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The Cleveland Browns released left tackle Desmond Harrison on Wednesday.
The team announced the transaction in a very short statement on their website.
We've released T Desmond Harrison
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) June 5, 2019
Details » https://t.co/7d8Finvj3v pic.twitter.com/HcqzTTqA0y
Harrison was not at the opening of mandatory minicamp on Tuesday after he missed his flight, according to head coach Freddie Kitchens. It was the latest in a series of problems with Harrison, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, and apparently the final straw for the Browns.
The #Browns informed former starting LT Desmond Harrison yesterday they were releasing him. My understanding is, he starting missing or being late to responsibilities. A player with a ton of talent who’ll now go on waivers.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 5, 2019
Harrison signed with Cleveland as an undrafted free agent out of West Georgia, a Division II school, in 2018, following the retirement of Joe Thomas. Even though general manager John Dorsey knew the Browns needed a replacement for Thomas, he did not look to fill the position via the 2018 NFL Draft. Instead, the Browns first tried to move left guard Joel Bitonio to tackle, but once they realized that was a mistake, opened the season with Harrison as the starter.
That experiment lasted eight games as Harrison lost the starter’s role to Greg Robinson beginning with the November 4 game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Harrison finished the year as the 67th-ranked tackle in the NFL with a grade of 57.1, according to Pro Football Focus.
With Harrison’s release, the Browns will continue to look for a backup to Robinson at left tackle from a group of players that include Kendall Lamm, a free agent who signed with the Browns after spending four years with the Houston Texans, and Brian Fineanganofo, an undrafted free agent from Idaho State.