Sunday Dawg Chow: Browns news (12/19/21)

Cleveland Browns:

• Nick Mullens excited to get 1st reps with 1st-team offense as he prepares to start Monday vs. Raiders (Browns Zone) - Quarterback Nick Mullens joined the Browns practice squad Sept. 1. He took his first repetition with the first-team offense Saturday at practice. With Baker Mayfield and Case Keenum on the COVID-19 reserve list, Mullens is preparing to start Monday at 5 p.m. against the Raiders at FirstEnergy Stadium.
• Browns ‘embrace the uncertainty ... challenge’ of dealing with COVID-19 outbreak and preparing for Raiders (Beacon Journal) - Coach Kevin Stefanski watched Saturday’s Browns practice on Zoom without clear vision. The Internet connection wasn’t the problem. It was the chaos and confusion created by the team’s COVID-19 outbreak.
• Anthony Schwartz returns to practice, questionable for Monday against Raiders (cleveland.com) - The extra time allowed by postponing the Browns-Raiders matchup until Monday isn’t just giving COVID-19-positive players a chance to return. It’s opened the door for at least one other Browns player to potentially play. Rookie wide receiver Anthony Schwartz practiced on Saturday for the first time since suffering a concussion in the Browns’ 45-7 loss to the Patriots. He was limited and is questionable for the game.
• Browns Playoff Hopes: Week 15 games that could be of impact (Browns Wire) - The Cleveland Browns Week 15 game is postponed and still very little information about how many players might get activated off the reserve/COVID-19 list for the game. No matter what, Cleveland needs a victory over the Las Vegas Raiders especially now that their Christmas Day matchup with Green Bay got harder on a short week. The Browns also would like to see help from a number of teams throughout Week 15 to make their chase for a playoff spot easier.

NFL:

• Veteran Casey Hayward calms with play, poise (Las Vegas Review-Journal) - Raiders cornerback Casey Hayward fondly remembers his veteran mentors and the role they played in his career. They taught him how to study film. How to practice and prepare — and now, he realizes, how to lead.
• With an injured Lamar Jackson, Tyler Huntley shows Baltimore Ravens are more than ‘a one-man show’ (ESPN) - Four weeks ago in a 16-13 victory in Chicago, Baltimore Ravens backup quarterback Tyler Huntley shook hands with quarterbacks coach James Urban on the sideline, just moments after he had led a game-winning, fourth-quarter drive in his first NFL start. Huntley thanked Urban for staying on the phone with him toward the end of the seventh round of the 2020 draft and immediately offering him a spot on the Ravens after he went undrafted.
• Rams activate WR Odell Beckham, RB Darrell Henderson from reserve/COVID list (NFL.com) - Several Rams players including star wideout Odell Beckham have been cleared for returns following a stint on the reserve/COVID list this week.
• Vikings cut starter Bashaud Breeland after reported altercation with coaches, teammates at practice (Yahoo! Sports) - The Minnesota Vikings cut starting cornerback Bashaud Breeland on Saturday following a reported verbal altercation with coaches and teammates at practice, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Breeland allegedly got into an argument with coaches, removed his cleats and then argued with teammates who were trying to defuse the situation.