Browns free agent takes visit to Washington

NFL free agency continues at its very random pace after the first few days were full of action. The Cleveland Browns have made a number of moves, especially on the defense, to try to improve a team that was a few plays away from making the playoffs in 2022. At 7-10, the season seemed so much worse than it would have been if the Browns didn’t blow just a couple of games.

The hope is that the 2023 season, starting with the upgrades at defensive and special teams coordinator spots, will be different.

One of the key injuries last season was the loss of veteran leader and linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. Walker played in just three games last year for Cleveland and was the first of a cascading amount of injuries at the linebacker position.

Monday, Walker is visiting the Washington Commanders and could rejoin QB Jacoby Brissett taking a lot of leadership with them:

A couple of his teammates took to Twitter last week to call for the linebacker’s return.

In 2021, his first with the Browns, Walker had 113 tackles in 13 games.

If Walker signs with Washington, it will be interesting to see what GM Andrew Berry’s response is. Berry has already brought back Sione Takitaki and Jordan Kunaszyk at the position. Does new DC Jim Schwartz see them as an option to start at middle linebacker?

The big-name free agent at the position is Bobby Wagner but he’s likely to command a larger contract than Cleveland will be comfortable with. The NFL draft could provide some answers as well but the middle linebacker is generally the signal caller for the defense, decides on audibles and rarely comes off the field. A lot to ask of a rookie.

We will keep you up to date as we have the last week of Browns free agency moves, rumors and reports.