Saturday Dawg Chow: Browns news (10/5/19)

Cleveland Browns:

• Odell Beckham rails against NFL fine system (ESPN) - Cleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. confirmed Friday that he was fined by the NFL for his skirmish with Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey. Beckham said, given the heat of the moment, he couldn’t tell if Humphrey was choking him. But he did say he had to restrain himself from escalating the incident further.
• Antonio Callaway ready for Monday night spotlight (cleveland.com) - Browns wide receiver Antonio Callaway came into the 2019 season with big goals. He said during minicamp that he wanted 1,000 receiving yards and 10 or more touchdowns. Those goals took a hit when Callaway was suspended four games in August for violating the league’s policy on substances of abuse.

• Odell Beckham offers to pay JC Tretter’s fine (ohio.com) - Odell Beckham Jr. spent a good chunk of his 19-minute media availability Friday outlining how he’s always been a giving person. Beckham said he and Browns center JC Tretter were fined by the NFL for the skirmish with the Ravens. Beckham didn’t disclose how much he was fined, but Tretter revealed he had been docked $14,037 for pulling Humphrey off Beckham. Both players said they’ll appeal the fines, the costs of which the NFL will disclose Saturday.
• Slowing down Cleveland’s pass rush is easier said than done (Niners Nation) - The San Francisco 49ers offense will have their hands full on Monday night as they try to keep the Cleveland Browns pass-rush out of their backfield. Coming into the season, many felt like Cleveland had the best defensive line in the league, and they have yet to disappoint. The Browns have pressured opposing quarterbacks 32% of the time, which is fifth in the NFL. Myles Garrett leads the way with five sacks, but he’s far from the only one getting after the quarterback. Sheldon Richardson, Olivier Vernon, and Larry Ogunjobi have all impressed in four games.

NFL:

• Rams lose Clay Matthews to a broken jaw (Orange County Register) - Rams linebacker Clay Matthews broke his jaw late in Thursday night’s game in Seattle and will miss at least as month, making the team’s second consecutive defeat more costly than they knew at the time. Coach Sean McVay revealed the injury in a conference call with reporters Friday.
• Redskins to start Colt McCoy vs. Patriots (NFL.com) - Jay Gruden finally announced his starting quarterback for Sunday’s tilt versus the New England Patriots. Colt McCoy gets the nod.
• Stefon Diggs fined for missing Vikings practice, meetings (CBS Sports) - Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs has made it clear that he’s not ecstatic about his current standing with the team, and now, he has been punished for time missed this week. Diggs missed several meetings and practice due to undisclosed reasons. As a result, Tom Pelissero reports that the team has fined him. What’s interesting is that this is apparently not the first time he has missed a meeting this season.
• Why 2020 NFL free agency could be wild (ESPN) - Back in June, when I put together this list of 50 NFL players who could get contract extensions during the offseason, I obviously didn’t expect all 50 of them to get extended. It looks as if 14 of them did, which leaves 36 who didn’t, including one, defensive tackle Mike Daniels, who got cut. (Oops.) Of those 36, 34 are in contract years (the exceptions being Daniels and Trent Williams, who’s holding out), which means we’re now working with a list of guys who can be free agents in March.