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According to the NFL Network, the Cleveland Browns have released QB Brock Osweiler, and it’s a move that not a single fan is going to shed any tears about. Why? Ian Rapoport summed it up perfectly:
The #Browns traded for QB Brock Osweiler, thinking they’d cut him. Then tried to play him, start him, then trade him again… now cut.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 1, 2017
We got our little taste of Osweiler-fever when he played better than the other quarterbacks during the Orange & Brown Scrimmage prior to any of the preseason games. That, coupled with a few exciting practices, compelled Hue Jackson to name him the starting quarterback for the first two preseason games. He disappointed, though, reminding everyone why he was turned away by the Texans in the first place.
I guarantee you that Jackson looked at those performances and thought to himself, “There is no way I’m wasting time with this guy as the starting QB -- let’s go back to our original plan and get rid of him.” The team also has a guy in rookie DeShone Kizer who showed more potential and will start Week 1 against the Steelers.
It remains to be seen whether both Cody Kessler and Kevin Hogan will make the final 53-man roster, but that is the scenario I called for after Hogan’s rapid improvement from 2016 to 2017.
Currently, Cleveland is on the hook for Osweiler’s $16 million in guaranteed salary. If a team pays him, there could be some offset, similar to what happened with CB Joe Haden in Pittsburgh:
Osweiler's $16M salary has offset language. So, #Browns may get off the hook for a little of the cash they paid for that 2nd-round pick.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 1, 2017
NOTE: Follow our Browns roster cut tracker for all of the latest transactions.