BEREA, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The Browns injury report is still 17 names long but four players that were idle Wednesday returned to practice Thursday.
Defensive ends Myles Garrett, Jadeveon Clowney, Takkarist McKinley and tight end David Njoku were all limited as preparations continue for Sunday’s game with the 5-0 Cardinals.
“Every player has those little bumps and bruises they have to deal with,” defensive coordinator Joe Woods said. “I think seeing the leader of our defense trying to push through it just helps motivate the guys. When they feel that way, ‘I see Myles doing it. I need to step up and I need to do it.’
“We do not want to encourage guys who are truly injured to go out there – that is a decision that they have to make – but I think Myles going out on the field and fighting through those things is big for us and what we are trying to do defensively.”
Garrett, who leads the NFL with 7.0 sacks this season, played through ankle and knee injuries in Sunday’s loss to the Chargers while Clowney was inactive after his surgically repaired knee started to bother him during pregame warmups.
“It happens,” Woods said of Clowney being a last-minute scratch. “That is why as a coach you can’t let things surprise you like ‘Oh my god, what are we going to do?’ We addressed it, looked at our gameplan, made the adjustment we needed to make, talked to the people we needed to talk to and just went out and played the game.”
McKinley is also battling ankle and knee injuries.
Njoku, who had seven catches for 149 yards including a 71-yard touchdown in L.A., is battling a knee injury.
Ready to go – Starting cornerbacks Denzel Ward and Greg Newsome II sound like they’re ready to play Sunday.
Both players indicated Thursday they’re expecting to play this week against the Cardinals.
Ward said that he aggravated a neck injury suffered at Minnesota against the Chargers while Newsome has been idle the last two weeks due to a calf injury.
Chubb and Hunt still idle – Running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt remain sidelined with injuries.
Chubb, who has a calf injury, was not on the field during the portion of practice open to reporters while Hunt worked on the side with wrist and knee injuries.
Sunday in L.A. the two combined for 222 yards and three touchdowns rushing.
Beep, beep – Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray is as explosive as they get.
How would Browns safety John Johnson III, who used to play against Murray twice per year while with the Rams, describe him?
“He’s a roadrunner, so quick and so fast,” Johnson said. “I was talking with Case Keenum, and he was like, free rushers is kind of what he wants. He just dances around people. It’s kind of like you gotta tempo your rush and try to keep him in the pocket.”
Injury report – DNP: RB Nick Chubb (calf), RT Jack Conklin (knee), RB Kareem Hunt (wrist, knee), LB Malcolm Smith (abdomen), C J.C. Tretter (knee), LT Jedrick Wills Jr. (ankle); LIMITED: DE Myles Garrett (knee, ankle), DE Jadeveon Clowney (elbow, knee), DE Takkarist McKinley (ankle, knee), TE David Njoku (knee), CB A.J. Green (shoulder, knee), DE Malik Jackson (knee), Malik McDowell (elbow, foot, neck), CB Greg Newsome II (calf), CB Denzel Ward (neck), CB Greedy Williams (shoulder, knee); FULL: LB Elijah Lee (hip)
Up next – Practice Friday.