With both the UFL and NFL in their offseason lulls, it's the perfect time to dive into some offseason content. As the UFL awaits the next wave of NFL signings for the 2026 player acquisition cycle, we're taking a look back at how each NFL team has utilized spring football as a developmental pipeline during the modern era of spring football since 2022. We continue the series with the Cleveland Browns, highlighting every spring league player the organization has signed over the past four years.
2022 Cycle:
With the return of the USFL the Cleveland Browns signed three players from the league. Derek Dillon (Tampa Bay Bandits) would eventually be released during training camp of 2022, however DPOY Chris Odom (Houston Gamblers) would tear his ACL, leaving him on injured reserve, and out of football in 2023, before his return to the UFL in 2024. The team took a chance on TE to OT Hunter Thedford (Pittsburgh Maulers) in 2023, however he’d be released early in training camp that same year.
2023 Cycle:
In the loaded spring football season of 2023, the Browns would sign six players, three from the XFL and three from the USFL. Derrick Kelly (San Antonio Brahmas), Nate Meadors (St. Louis Battlehawks) and Charles Wiley (Houston Roughnecks) would both be released during training camp in 2023, however the team would roster several players on their practice squad from the class. While DB Lorenzo Burns (Birmingham Stallions) would spend a short time with Cleveland on the practice squad, WR Austin Watkins would spend the whole year in Cleveland even earning an elevation.
The most impactful player with the Browns from the 2023 class would come in Kaden Davis (Michigan Panthers), who joined the team in 2024, spending over a year with the franchise, appearing in several games as Cleveland’s primary kick returner. Davis would be released in 2026, joining the UFL’s Houston Gamblers, and is now with the Chicago Bears.
2024 Cycle:
Post merger of the USFL and XFL the Browns would sign six players from the UFL during the 2024 signing cycle. Jacob Saylors (St. Louis Battlehawks), Chim Okorafor (Michigan Panthers), Zack Johnson (Birmingham Stallions) and Marvin Moody (Houston Roughnecks) would all be used during training camp, however the team would find key special teams players later in the year. After being released Rex Sunahara (San Antonio Brahmas) and Andre Smyzt (St. Louis Battlehawks) would both find their way into the starting lineups with Sunahara becoming the teams starting long snapper in October of 2024, and Smyzt the starting kicker in 2025. Both players remain on the team going into 2026.
2025 Cycle:
In 2025, the Browns signed five players from the UFL, with Smyzt, Davis, and Sunahara still on the roster. While Charlie Thomas (Arlington Renegades), Marvin Moody (Houston Roughnecks), Keenan Isaac (Houston Roughnecks) and Toa Taua (Michigan Panthers) all would be released at the conclusion of training camp, veteran TE Sal Cannella (Arlington Renegades) would find a home on their practice squad.
Cannella would spend the whole season on the Browns practice squad, until the end of the year where he’d be elevated for the final two games of the season. He’d make his NFL debut, recording two receptions before his release in early 2026, and would eventually return to the UFL this time with the St. Louis Battlehawks.
Since the return of the USFL in 2022, the Browns have signed 19 players (20 contracts), with spring football ties. The team has received high ROIs from Smyzt, Davis, Sunahara, and even Cannella, with several more players spending time on their practice squad. The Browns have yet to sign any spring football players during the 2026 signing cycle and have two players with spring football ties on their roster currently. UFL to NFL signings will continue once the teams begin training camp, later in July.