Browns shuffling roster ahead of season finale

Cleveland made a series of moves on Tuesday, including placing WR Cedric Tillman on injured reserve.

The Cleveland Browns front office was busy on Tuesday with a flurry of roster moves before the end of the year.

To kick things off, the Browns signed running back John Kelly Jr, a move necessitated by running back Jerome Ford’s ankle injury and running back Pierre Strong Jr. being in the concussion protocol, leaving the team thin at the position.

Kelly has played in 15 career games, including five with the Browns from 2021 to 2023. He was with the Browns in training camp this summer before being released. Kelly bounced around between the practice squads of the Los Angeles Chargers and Baltimore Ravens – he was active for two games with the Ravens without recording a stat — before returning to Cleveland.

The other major move of the day came when the club placed wide receiver Cedric Tillman on the injured reserve list. Tillman has not played since suffering a concussion in Week 12 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He finishes his second year with the Browns having played in 11 games, making six starts, with 29 receptions for 339 yards and three touchdowns.

Cleveland also signed running back Aidan Robbins and tight end Cameron Latu to the practice squad.

The 6-foot-2 and 237-pound Robbins spent training camp with the Browns after signing as an undrafted free agent out of Brigham Young.

The 6-foot-5 and 245-pound Latu was originally a third-round pick by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2023 NFL Draft. He spent his rookie season on injured reserve with a knee injury before Cleveland signed him to the practice squad in late August.

The Browns released Latu on December 18 and his return adds a familiar face in case tight end David Njoku is not ready for Saturday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens as he is still dealing with a knee injury.

Finally, Cleveland released linebacker Brandon Bouyer-Randle from the injured reserve list.