BEREA, Ohio — The Browns walked away from their season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars with both a loss on their record and a loss to their roster after running back Dylan Sampson left the field with a knee injury. That injury is severe enough that the team has placed him on injured reserve.
Sampson left the field in the first quarter with trainers. He was evaluated in the blue medical tent and then went back in the locker room for further evaluation. A short time later, Sampson walked back to the sideline, appearing to give it a shot to return. As he did, the Browns listed him as questionable to return with what they called a knee injury.
Early in the second quarter, Sampson was ruled out for the remainder of the game with the knee injury.
Before he left the field, Sampson posted a 37-yard kick return and returned another for 27 yards.
On Monday after the loss, head coach Todd Monken said they were awaiting more information regarding Sampson's injury before he would be able to provide an update, but one day later Sampson was placed on IR.
The second-year running back will miss at least four games after being placed on injured reserve.
In addition to placing Sampson on IR, the Browns made several additional roster moves on Tuesday.
The team signed running back Jaleel McLaughlin to the active roster from the practice squad.
McLaughlin was originally signed by the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent out of Youngstown State. The running back played in 41 games with the Broncos, posting 1,093 total yards on 226 carries with three touchdowns, as well as 59 receptions for 263 yards and four touchdowns. The Browns signed him to the practice squad on Sept. 1.
The Browns also signed running back Eric Gray, tackle Obinna Eze, punter Wes Pahl and tackle Xavier Truss to the practice squad, while also releasing cornerback D’Angelo Ross and defensive tackle Chris Williams from the practice squad.
Gray is in his fourth NFL season out of Oklahoma, originally drafted by the Giants in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Gray has appeared in 34 career games.
Eze, a native of Lagos, Nigeria, will count on the roster as part of the International Player Pathway Program and will take the one additional spot on the practice squad roster to allow the Browns to carry 17 total players. Originally signed by Detroit as an undrafted free agent in 2022, Eze has spent time on the practice squads in Detroit, Pittsburgh and the New York Jets.
Pahl returns to the Browns after spending the preseason and time earlier this season on Cleveland’s practice squad.
Truss was originally signed as an undrafted free agent by Denver in 2025, but after being waived, he signed with New Orleans, where he has appeared in seven career games with the Saints.
