Browns 53-man roster projection: 2026 pre-training camp prediction

BEREA ― The  Cleveland Browns  are about to get their 2026 training camp underway. Veterans report July 28, and the first full-squad practice is the next day.

So, in the spirit of that happening, let's to take a swing at projecting how the  Browns ' initial 53-man roster will look when roster cutdown date arrives. That's expected to happen at 4 p.m. Aug. 30, although the league hasn't officially announced the date.

We did one of these after mandatory minicamp ended in June. Obviously, nothing has happened on the field to change much, but this allows for a fresh look at the projection.

Let's dive into this latest guess that's sure to look foolish in hindsight. The players are listed alphabetically under each position group.

Offense (27)

Quarterbacks (3)

Taylen Green

Shedeur Sanders

Deshaun Watson

Notable cut: Dillon Gabriel

This hasn't changed in the last month. Green's athletic ability remains tantalizing enough to keep him on the roster. Gabriel, though, could still overtake him if he has a strong camp.

Running backs (4)

Michael Burton (fullback)

Quinshon Judkins

Dylan Sampson

Raheim "Rocket" Sanders

Notable cut: Ahmani Marshall

The previous projection had Marshall in and Burton out. However, with more thought put into it, Todd Monken's love for the fullback position means it's likely he's going to be on the roster. That's a tough break for Marshall, who suffered a similar fate in 2025.

Tight ends (4)

Brendan Bates

Harold Fannin Jr.

Joe Royer

Blake Whiteheart

Notable cuts: Carsen Ryan, Joe Stoll

Bates had a solid offseason program, which is why he makes it after more thought was put into this projection. That makes one of the two draft picks, Royer or Ryan, a tough cut. Ryan was the one who fell on the wrong side of things just because he was a seventh-rounder compared to a sixth-rounder in Royer.

Wide receivers (6)

Isaiah Bond

Denzel Boston

KC Concepcion

Malachi Corley

Jerry Jeudy

Tylan Wallace

Notable cuts: Luke Floriea, Gage Larvadain, Jamari Thrash, Cedric Tillman

This position remains both easy and hard to project until the Browns start camp. Bond, Boston, Concepcion and Jeudy seem like obvious picks. Special teams are likely to factor into this one, which is why Wallace is included. Corley, Larvadain and Thrash are in the mix to be the sixth, which is the guess at the number they'll keep here.

Offensive line (10)

Austin Barber (T)

Parker Brailsford (C)

Jack Conley (G/T)

Spencer Fano (T)

Tytus Howard (T)

Elgton Jenkins (C/G)

Teven Jenkins (G)

Zion Johnson (G)

Dawand Jones (T)

KT Leveston (G)

Notable cuts: Jeremiah Byers (T), Kingsley Eguakan (C), Kendrick Green (G), Tyre Phillips (T), Luke Wypler (C), Zak Zinter (G)

Nothing's really changed here. Actually, absolutely nothing's changed here, because much more information is necessary before making many decisions about this group.

Defense (23)

Defensive line (9)

Maliek Collins (DT)

Kalia Davis (DT)

Mason Graham (DT)

Michael Hall Jr. (DT)

Adin Huntington (DE)

Sam Kamara (DT)

Isaiah McGuire (DE)

Jared Verse (DE)

Alex Wright (DE)

Notable cuts: Logan Fano (DE), Julian Okwara (DE), Tyreak Sapp (DE)

If the Browns keep 10, which neither projection has had so far, then Fano could be a possibility. We stayed with nine for the purposes of this projection.

Linebackers (5)

Justin Jefferson

Winston Reid

Carson Schwesinger

Nathaniel Watson

Quincy Williams

Notable cuts: Easton Mascarenas-Arnold, Reid Carrico

There's no chance the Browns only keep four linebackers, right? Five has to be the minimum.

Defensive backs (9)

Tyson Campbell (CB)

Grant Delpit (S)

Christopher Edmonds (S)

Myles Harden (CB)

Ronnie Hickman (S)

Damarri Mathis (CB)

Emmanuel McNeil-Warren (S)

D'Angelo Ross (CB)

Denzel Ward (CB)

Notable cuts: Tre Avery (CB), Myles Bryant (CB), Michael Coats Jr. (CB), Donovan McMillon (S), Daniel Thomas (S)

The same issues that plagued the projection of this group in June remains in July. This is another group that looks like it might be one player shy.

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Specialists (3)

Andre Szmyt (K)

Corey Bojorquez (P)

Rex Sunahara (LS)

Notable cuts: None

Not sure much really has to be said about this group.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns 53-man roster projection: 2026 pre-training camp prediction

Indexed and credited by AIPROPX. Originating outlet: Yahoo Sports. Open at source →