The Cleveland Browns cut wide receiver David Bell Thursday evening. The 2022 third-round pick from Purdue practiced earlier the same day. He was however limited with a quad injury. The Browns then strangely re-signed him back to the practice squad on Saturday.
Cleveland is expected to have Bell back on the main roster early in the week after the matchup against Dallas on Sunday. The move seems to have been made in order to make room for wide receiver Jaelon Darden to be elevated from the practice squad. The belief is that Darden was brought up in order to return punts and possibly kickoffs against the Cowboys. It’s also possible that Bell was trending towards being inactive with his quad injury as well, further explaining the move.
The situation appears to have been nothing more than a case of roster shuffling. Cleveland is still looking for a permanent replacement for punt returns after the Donovan Peoples-Jones trade to Detroit last year. Darden should get his opportunity to fill that spot on Sunday afternoon.
The Browns have some depth at receiver now with young players having produced well in the preseason. Rookie fifth-round pick Jamari Thrash had an impressive three-game stretch. He racked up 141 receiving yards and one TD on his 10 catches. There is likely a battle between Bell and Thrash for snaps after those performances.
The Browns also return 2023 third-round pick Cedric Tillman. He had solid moments in his limited time as a rookie. The huge addition of Jerry Jeudy in the offseason also allows Cleveland to shuffle the receiving room when needed as they did with Bell.
David Bell has produced little on the field as a Brown so far in his career. He has not seen the field much in his two seasons. He did score three touchdowns last year, including two against the Cincinnati Bengals in the final week of the regular season. He racked up 167 yards total as well on his 14 receptions in 2023. That was a slight drop from his 214 yards on 24 catches as a rookie.
Bell most likely won’t see the field too consistently in 2024. It’s entirely possible he could be moved around again. His quad injury seems to be nothing, but fans still should be on the lookout for any more developments. The Browns’ receiving room as a whole will be a key factor for the team this year with Deshaun Watson back healthy. David Bell’s role will be an interesting one to watch develop.
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