Browns Receiver Retires Following Offseason Surgery

Derrick Willies has played his last game in the NFL, with the Cleveland Browns wide receiver deciding to call it a career after offseason surgery.

The Browns announced that they were placing Willies on the reserve/retired list on Friday. Willies had offseason knee surgery, which head coach Kevin Stefanski disclosed while speaking to the media on Thursday.

“Minor — I guess no surgery’s minor — but he’s doing fine,” Stefanski said.

While it’s tough to see any player call it a career, especially at the age of 26, Willies wasn’t much of a contributor for the Browns. He played in six games after going undrafted in 2018, catching three balls for 61 yards.

With Willies out, the Browns now have a roster spot to fill for training camp and the preseason. With a deep stable of wide receivers — headlined by Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. — we’ll see if the Browns try to bring in another pass-catcher, or instead opt to add depth to another position.

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Rashard Higgins Battling Through Ankle Injury

The depth chart battle among the wide receiver will be interesting to watch during camp, with the team assembling quite the group of pass-catchers.

Veteran receiver Rashard Higgins resigned with the Browns this offseason and is expected to fill the No. 3 wide receiver role. However, he’s dealing with an ankle injury he suffered on the first day of practice. He didn’t practice Thursday but was back on the field for the final practice of the week.

Higgins — one of quarterback Baker Mayfield’s favorite targets — caught 37 balls for 599 yards and four touchdowns last season. He’ll have to hold off a talented, young group that includes second-year pass-catcher Donovan Peoples-Jones, rookie speedster Anthony Schwartz, KhaDarel Hodge and JoJo Natson,

With one year of experience in Kevin Stefanski’s offense, the unit as a whole is just trying to improve on the strong start they had a year ago.

“Obviously, it starts here in training camp,” Landry said about how the Browns can improve from last year. “We took an evaluation of how we did last year. Whether it was penalties or whether it was turnovers, those are things that we can try to eliminate and take those numbers down a little bit, and it gives us a better chance to win some of the games that we may not have.”

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Pair of Defenders Leave Practice Early With Training Staff

The Browns did have some players banged up during Friday’s practice, with both defensive end Takk McKinley and Ronnie Harrison heading to the locker room with members of the training staff.

Harrison suffered an apparent leg injury, while McKinley could be seen vomiting, per Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal.

Earlier in the week cornerback Greedy Williams headed to the locker room early with a “heat-related” issue.

“Trainers just said I look suspicious so they pulled me. I feel great and excited to be back out there,” Williams tweeted.

There was worry that that it could have been worse, considering Williams — a former second-round pick of the Browns — was coming off a shoulder issue that saw him miss all of last season.

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