HEADLINES

De’Ante Saunders

Armonty Bryant, De’Ante Saunders Indicted

February 10th, 2016 at 1:37pm CST by Ben Levine

FEBRUARY 10, 1:37pm: Bryant and Saunders have been indicted on felony charges, according to a report from NewsNet5.com. Bryant was indicted on two counts of felony drug possession, while Saunders was indicted for improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle, per the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas.

DECEMBER 26, 2:32pm: A gun belonging to Saunders was in his glove compartment without a permit, the Akron Beacon Journal’s Nate Ulrich reports (on Twitter), with a Cuyahoga County prosecutor will review the matter.

A Cuyahoga County prosecutor will also review Bryant’s case, per Ulrich (on Twitter), and the third-year player has not been charged. Bryant was arrested for possession of Adderall, and he could not produce a prescription, Ulrich tweets. If he can’t provide a prescription, Bryant could also be subject to an NFL suspension, Cabot tweets.

1:25pm: Saunders has been charged with drunk driving and speeding and could also face a charge of having a gun while drunk, Evan McDonald of Cleveland.com reports (on Twitter, via Mary Kay Cabot).

Bryant could face charges if he’s unable to produce a prescription for the Adderall in his possession at the time of the stop, McDonald reports (via Cabot, on Twitter).

8:30am: Browns linebacker Armonty Bryant and cornerback De’Ante Saunders were arrested early Christmas morning, reports Scott Taylor of WOIO TV in Cleveland (via Twitter). According to Taylor, the duo was stopped on I-71 and arrested at 2:16 am on Friday morning. Saunders was arrested for OVI (operating a vehicle impaired) and speeding.

The two players were picked up by a friend after being processed early Christmas morning. Saunders refused a breath test, McDonald reports. He will appear in court Monday.

Browns general manager Ray Farmer gave Taylor a brief statement regarding the arrests (via Twitter):

“We have been made aware of the arrests of De’Ante Saunders and Armonty Bryant after a traffic stop early Friday morning.

These are charges that we take very seriously. The importance of responsible decision-making is something we continually stress to all members of our organizations, which makes it extremely disappointing that these two individuals would put themselves in this situation by making such poor decisions.

Armony will be inactive on Sunday for our game against the Chiefs and will not travel with the team to Kansas City so he can tend to this personal legal matter.

In addition to being a pending legal matter, this incident is subject to the NFL personal conduct policy and we have no further comment at this time.”

Bryant, a seventh-round pick in 2013, is having a career year in 2015. The 25-year-old has started two of his 14 games, compiling career-highs in tackles (40), sacks (5.5), and forced fumbles (two). Bryant is set to make $675K next season, but the Browns could cut the linebacker without being left with any dead money.

Saunders, an undrafted rookie, joined the Browns in November. The Tennessee State product made his only appearance in Week 9 against the Bengals, where he compiled a single tackle. The 23-year-old was on the Browns practice squad at the time of the arrest.

Browns Cut Daryl Richardson, De’Ante Saunders

December 28th, 2015 at 2:44pm CST by Luke Adams

The Browns have made a pair of changes to their 53-man roster, releasing running back Daryl Richardson from the squad and promoting linebacker Cam Johnson to fill the newly-created opening, according to a team release.

In addition to cutting Richardson and elevating Johnson to the active roster, the Browns have also waived defensive back De’Ante Saunders from their practice squad. Saunders was arrested last week along with Cleveland linebacker Armonty Bryant, and has pleaded not guilty after being charged with suspicion of drunken driving, writes Evan MacDonald of Cleveland.com.

Saunders may eventually face discipline from the NFL if the league determines he violated the personal conduct policy, but if he does have to serve a suspension, it seems it won’t be with the Browns. As for Richardson, he signed with Cleveland earlier this month, but didn’t see the field during his brief stint with the team — he was inactive for the two games he was on the 53-man roster, and will now return to waivers.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/4/15

November 4th, 2015 at 3:09pm CST by Luke Adams

With the 2015 trade deadline now behind us, NFL teams will have one less tool at their disposal to try to upgrade their rosters. We can expect plenty more signings and cuts in the coming weeks though. Here are today’s minor transactions from across the league:

  • The Raiders have signed receiver and return man Marcus Thigpen, according to Bill Williamson of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Thigpen, who has already spent time with the Bills and Colts this season, will get a chance to take over return duties in Oakland.
  • The Browns have placed tight end Rob Housler on injured reserve, promoting defensive back De’Ante Saunders from the practice squad to replace him on the roster, per Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal (Twitter link). Housler caught just one pass for the club before seeing his season derailed by a hamstring issue.
  • After moving Clinton McDonald to their injured reserve list on Tuesday, the Buccaneers have added another defensive lineman, announcing in a press release that they’ve signed Lawrence Sidbury. Sidbury, who initially joined the Bucs last December, has never been an NFL starter, but appeared in 48 games for the Falcons in the first four years of his career.
  • The Chargers announced a slew of roster moves on Tuesday, and they capped that series of transactions today by promoting defensive lineman Damion Square to their 53-man roster, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. Square is one of four new players on San Diego’s roster this week.
  • Having cut running back Joseph Randle on Tuesday, the Cowboys signed running back Trey Williams off Washington‘s practice squad to fill the hole in the backfield, according to Rapoport (via Twitter). Williams, who has yet to see a regular-season snap, figures to fight Rod Smith for the No. 3 role behind Darren McFadden and Christine Michael.
  • The Steelers have elevated cornerback Doran Grant from their practice squad to the active roster, waiving QB/WR Tyler Murphy in a corresponding move, the team announced today.

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC North

September 6th, 2015 at 5:41pm CST by Luke Adams

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC North teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Ravens, Bengals, Browns, and Steelers are noted below.

Additionally, as of 11:00am today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. For the 2014 and 2015 seasons, changes were made to practice squad rules that allow teams to carry eight players instead of 10, and the eligibility requirements for those extra two spots were also loosened. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.

Here are Sunday’s AFC North transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day:

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

(press release)

  • Removed from IR list:
    • WR Onterio McCalebb
  • Signed to practice squad:
    • T Dan France
    • CB Troy Hill
    • G Trey Hopkins
    • WR Jake Kumerow
    • TE Matt Lengel
    • LB Trevor Roach
    • RB Terrell Watson
    • QB Keith Wenning
    • RB James Wilder Jr.
    • DT DeShawn Williams

Cleveland Browns

Pittsburgh Steelers

(press release)

  • Signed:
    • RB Jordan Todman
  • Claimed off waivers:
    • DT Caushaud Lyons
  • Cut:
    • LB Anthony Chickillo
    • CB Doran Grant
  • Signed to practice squad:
    • RB Dominique Brown
    • DB Jordan Dangerfield
    • OL Reese Dismukes
    • LB L.J. Fort
    • LB Shayon Green
    • DE Ethan Hemer
    • OL Antonio Johnson
    • WR Shakim Phillips
    • TE Harold Spears
    • WR Jarrod West
    • OL Matt Feiler (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson)

Browns Keep West, Pryor On 53-Man Roster

September 5th, 2015 at 3:54pm CST by Luke Adams

The Browns have announced their roster moves for the day, and two offensive players who were viewed as potential release – or trade – candidates have made the cut — running back Terrance West and quarterback-turned-wide-receiver Terrelle Pryor are still members of the Browns.

Cleveland has also confirmed that quarterbacks Thad Lewis and Pat Devlin have been cut, meaning Johnny Manziel looks poised to enter the year healthy enough to be Josh McCown‘s backup.

Here’s the Browns’ full list of moves, via a team release:

Waived:

  • OL Karim Barton
  • RB Shaun Draughn
  • DB Landon Feichter
  • RB Tim Flanders
  • DB Kendall James
  • WR Darius Jennings
  • OL Erle Ladson
  • WR Josh Lenz
  • WR Vince Mayle
  • DL Jacobbi McDaniel
  • OL Andrew McDonald
  • OL Darrian Miller
  • DB Robert Nelson
  • OL Vinston Painter
  • LB Hayes Pullard III
  • DB Joe Rankin
  • LB Mike Reilly
  • DB De’Ante Saunders
  • DL Dylan Wynn

Released:

  • OL Eric Olsen

Browns Sign Four Undrafted Free Agents

May 8th, 2015 at 3:34pm CST by Luke Adams

The Browns have officially signed four undrafted free agents, the team announced today in a press release. There may be more UDFA additions coming for the Browns – more players reportedly agreed to terms with the team earlier in the week – but for now, Cleveland’s UDFA class is one of the league’s smallest. Here are the club’s new rookie additions:

  • Tyler Loos, OL, Northern Illinois
  • Darrian Miller, OL, Kentucky ($5K bonus, plus $15K guaranteed salary, per Aaron Wilson)
  • De’Ante Saunders, DB, Tennessee State
  • Dylan Wynn, DL, Oregon State