The Cleveland Browns, like every other team in the NFL, were hoping to avoid any major Injuries in the training camp and preseason -- especially to players who are expected to contribute in a big way this coming season. They didn't get any good news on the two players who left practice on Thursday, however, one of them being linebacker Jacob Phillips, the team's third-round pick in 2020. Phillips left practice on Thursday with an injury that is reportedly diagnosed as a torn biceps tendon, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.
If that's the case, it's likely Phillips' season is over before it even begins. The other player in question is linebacker Sione Takitaki, who left with a hamstring issue, but there has been no update on his status as of yet.
The injuries create a flood of question marks at the linebacker position for the Browns -- leading them to reportedly re-sign Willie Harvey Jr., per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, a former undrafted free agent of the Browns in 2019.
They could also look to lean more heavily on Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, their rookie second-round pick, along with a veteran in Malcolm Smith. But Phillips and Takitaki aren't the only linebackers nursing injuries, with Mack Wilson and Tony Fields II joining that list. But, as it stands, Phillips is the only one expected to miss then entire 2021 campaign, and after showing a lot of promise regarding what he might be for the Browns this year.
The Browns grabbed Phillips, a former national champion at LSU, with the 97th-overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, and he'd go on to play in nine games as a rookie -- earning three starts and finishing with 25 combined tackles.
