On Wednesday, the Cleveland Browns announced that 13 players from the preseason training camp roster would be making a return to the organization as practice squad athletes after those players cleared the waiver process.
Now, the Browns are nearly finished with their practice squad signings after the team signed three players who were not with the team during the preseason.
Analyst Camryn Justice shared on X – the platform formerly known as Twitter – that Cleveland signed running back Gary Brightwell, cornerback Mike Ford Jr., and tight end Blake Whiteheart to the practice squad on Thursday.
The #Browns signed RB Gary Brightwell, CB Mike Ford Jr. and TE Blake Whiteheart to the practice squad today.
— Camryn Justice (@camijustice) August 29, 2024
Brightwell comes to Cleveland after being waived by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The 6-foot-1 running back was a sixth-round pick for the New York Giants during the 2021 NFL Draft, and he played in 37 games for the NFC East squad over the past three seasons.
Brightwell – who has 41 rushes for 164 yards and a touchdown over the past three seasons – was primarily a special teams athlete for the Giants.
The 25-year-old played on 590 special teams snaps for New York over the past three seasons, accounting for over 50 percent of the team’s total snaps from the unit each season.
Whiteheart made the Arizona Cardinals roster in 2023 after playing for Wake Forest previously.
The 6-foot-4 tight end played in two games for Arizona last year, earning a total of 11 snaps on both offense and special teams.
Whiteheart played five years for Wake Forest, catching 44 passes for 541 yards and six touchdowns over his time with the Demon Deacons.
Although Ford Jr. was not officially announced until Thursday, Browns Nation covered the special teams specialist’s return in a previous article.
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