The Cleveland Browns, to the surprise of no one, have not been big spenders in free agency.
Such is life when you are in the stages of a soft rebuild (is there such a thing?) while continuing to deal with one of the worst contracts in league history.
The good news is that general manager Andrew Berry has focused on the offensive line through the addition of three new starters: Elgton Jenkins and Zion Johnson in free agency, and the trade for Tytus Howard.
Berry continued on Wednesday with a transaction
that falls under the category of a “small move” as the team is reportedly re-signing defensive end Julian Okwara.
That is according to NFL reporter Aaron Wilson.
Okwara originally signed with the Browns as a free agent in 2025 but spent the season on the practice squad. But he did have a moment in the preseason with a sack against the Carolina Panthers.
The 6-foot-4 and 250-pound Okwara was originally a third-round selection by the Detroit Lions in the 2020 NFL Draft. He spent four seasons with the Lions, appearing in 38 games with the majority of his snaps coming on defense. He then spent the 2024 season with the Arizona Cardinals, playing in 13 games.
Okwara had a career-high five sacks in 2021, and over his five seasons, he has recorded 10 sacks, 72 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, and 18 quarterback hits.
It will be hard again this fall for Okwara to find playing time with the Browns, so this feels like a signing of a player they are familiar with for depth/insurance purposes. But good for Okwara for showing the team enough to earn another shot to show that he may be worth more than just some snaps in the preseason.
With Okwara staying around for the moment, that means the Browns have added or re-signed the following players to the defense this offseason:
- Linebacker Quincy Williams
- Cornerback D’Angelo Ross
- Defensive tackle Kalia Davis
- Cornerback Trey Avery
- Defensive end AJ Epenesa
The full list of Cleveland’s moves in free agency is available here.
