Former Browns in the UFL includes Siaki Ika, DTR

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - AUGUST 17: Siaki Ika #62 of the Cleveland Browns runs in pursuit during an NFL preseason football game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on August 17, 2023 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Ryan Kang/Getty Images) | Getty Images The Clevel

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The Cleveland Browns are in the middle of the free agency period, and at the same time, are prepping for the NFL draft in April. Over the years, there have been plenty of players who have come and gone that passed through Berea.

Some former players have accepted that their careers are over and have sought employment in the private sector. Others are unemployed in the football world, yet keep working out, waiting for their agent’s phone to ring, and are at the ready.

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Then there are the guys who haven’t given up the dream.

There are options out there for football players who aren’t under contract with an NFL club to continue their pro football career. The Canadian Football League begins its season on June 4. Arena Football One kicks off April 11. The United Football League (UFL) begins March 27 and will conclude with a championship game on June 13.

The UFL is a league that allows former players in all associations to come together and perform, get additional film, receive notoriety, gather additional stats, and get paid to continue their career playing professional football.

There are eight teams in the UFL, and they will play a schedule of 10 games with a spring format. This will be the third season for the UFL after the XFL and USFL merged into one entity for the 2024 season. Three league teams from last year relocated to new cities this season.

LINK: UFL WEBSITE

Television partners include ABC, FOX, ESPN, ESPN2, NFL Network, and FS1. Streaming partners are the ESPN app, FOX One, and DAZN. The league owns all eight clubs, with the coalition owned by FOX Sports, Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, RedBird Capital Partners, and Mike Repole of Impact Capital.

With a CBA in place until after the 2026 season, UFL players are paid $6,205 a week (up from $5,500) and signed to one-year deals with additional benefits including year-round health insurance, weekly housing stipends, and bonuses for performance. The league “Player of the Week” receives a bonus of $1,000, while there are bonuses for winning the championship, plus the league MVP receives a $7,500 check.

Training camps began with a maximum of 64 players, which is being pared down to 43 players on the main rosters for the season this week. Players are unionized under the United Football Players Association.

By nature, the UFL is a developmental league. It is also a training ground for referees who want to level up from the college ranks and test the professional ranks when the fall football season isn’t in session. The UFL is a place to experiment with rules, such as the XFL kickoff that the NFL has adopted. This year, the buzz is the four-point field goal of kicks converted from 60+ yards.

After the 2025 UFL season, 160 UFL players were given a workout, with 102 players signed to NFL training camps. That is why the UFL ends its season in June to allow its athletes the opportunity to continue forward with their football careers. Of that number, 46 were on an NFL roster beginning Week 1, either on the main roster, practice squad, or on some type of injury list.

The Browns’ 2025 roster had several former UFL players at different intervals on their squad, including two starters: K Andre Smytz, LS Rex Sunahara, TE Sal Cannella, RB Toa Taua, CB Keenan Isaac, and LB Charlie Thomas III.

This year’s UFL lineup is full of former Browns. Each team’s cutdown was during this past week, so this could change as other UFL teams are sure to pick up released players and add them to their roster. Five former Browns were released from UFL rosters this past week. But this list is accurate as of March 21.

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