Four weeks into the season, and the Cleveland Browns already sit at 1-3. While the quarterback drama is still the biggest storyline in Berea, the front office isn’t ignoring the rest of the roster. Ahead of their Week 5 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings, they made another move, adding depth up front.

On Wednesday, October 1, the Cleveland team signed guard LaDarius Henderson to their practice squad, per the team’s official website. The 23-year-old is entering his second NFL season out of Michigan after the Houston Texans drafted him in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL draft. However, he’s yet to play his first professional game.

Even before his rookie season kicked off, the Texans waived the Michigan Wolverines product with a non-football injury designation in July 2024. Henderson went under the knife to repair his foot and had to miss out on his whole rookie season after being placed on reserve/NFI.

Fast forward to August 2025, Henderson returned healthy and logged 47 offensive snaps across a couple of preseason games. But then the roster cutdowns rolled in, and the Houston team decided to cut ties with him. Before the Texans selected him with the No. 249 overall pick, Henderson spent four years at Arizona State from 2019 to 2022 at guard and tackle.

However, right before the 2023 season, he transferred to Michigan, where he started 10 games at left tackle, as the Wolverines emerged as champions with JJ McCarthy under the center. Meanwhile, the Browns have also made changes to their starting quarterback role ahead of the Vikings clash.

Shedeur Sanders still has to wait for the QB1 role

The Browns had clearly seen enough of Joe Flacco through the first four weeks. Three losses in four games, which might have been four if not for that wild Week 3 comeback against the Green Bay Packers. But fast forward to now, and the team has moved on from the 40-year-old veteran for the rookie quarterback. And it’s not Shedeur Sanders.

The Browns named third-round pick of the most recent draft, Dillon Gabriel, as their starting quarterback for the Week 5 game. This will be Gabriel’s first start after the team named him Flacco’s backup on the roster cutdown day. The rookie has seen limited action in a couple of regular-season games so far.

He entered late in the fourth quarter during their Week 2 matchup against the Baltimore Ravens, and completed 3-of-3 passing attempts for 19 yards and one touchdown. He once again showed up in the fourth quarter against the Detroit Lions in Week 4, but couldn’t complete his lone passing attempt as the Browns lost their third game of the season.

It’s still too early to tell if Gabriel can turn things around for the Browns. Over the next few weeks, we’ll see whether he can perform or if the team ends up turning to Sanders instead.