Browns Elevate Two Players Before Matchup With Ravens

The Cleveland Browns are elevating two players from their practice squad ahead of their matchup with the Baltimore Ravens.

Wide receiver Austin Watkins and cornerback A.J. Green are making their way up from the practice squad, according to reports. This is hardly a surprising development considering the state of Cleveland’s injury report. The Browns will be without wide receivers Marquise Goodwin and David Bell, which made elevating Watkins a necessity. Goodwin and Bell are not integral parts of Cleveland’s passing game, so there should not be too much on Watkins’ plate should he see the field.

Meanwhile, cornerback Greg Newsome is currently listed as questionable. There may be some concerns about his ability to play on Sunday, which could be why Watkins was elevated. Newsome is a significantly more essential player for Cleveland’s defense, and his possible absence would be a huge loss.

It is going to be tough for the Browns to win, much less stay competitive with the Ravens on Sunday. Cleveland is currently without multiple players at key positions, and this is something that can add up rather quickly. And that is before even mentioning the inconsistent state of their offense and not knowing which version of Deshaun Watson happens to show up on that day. There is a very real possibility that these injuries compound over the course of the game and play a factor in the final result. Cleveland came into this week having a razor-thin margin for error, and that is now smaller as things currently stand.