The 5-3 Browns have another reason to celebrate on Monday.
Cleveland announced that defensive tackle Maliek Colins has signed his two-year contract extension with the club.
The deal was agreed to over the weekend.
“Since we signed Maliek in the 2025 offseason, he has been a disruptive player in the middle of our defense and one of the top interior pass rushers in football,” Browns General Manager Andrew Berry said in a statement. “His non-stop motor, selflessness and endless pass rush arsenal make him a perfect fit for our attack-style defense. As much as he has contributed to our defensive success on the field, the things he does behind the scenes are just as impactful.
“For the past two years, Maliek has been THE veteran, stabilizing presence in the meeting rooms, on the practice field and in the facility. His impact on our young defensive line’s growth can’t be overstated. We’re excited to keep Maliek in Cleveland for several more years.”
Collins registered a career-high 6.5 sacks in 12 games with the Browns last season. In seven games so far this year, he’s tallied 3.5 sacks, six tackles for loss, and eight QB hits.
A third-round pick in 2016, Collins has tallied 40.5 career sacks for the Cowboys, Raiders, Texans, 49ers, and Browns.
Browns Clips
The Browns are up to four quarterbacks on their active roster.
They announced on Monday that they have activated Dillon Gabriel from the injured reserve list. Gabriel went on the list with a back injury ahead of Week 1 and was at the end of the 21-day practice window that opened when he was designated for return.
Gabriel joins Deshaun Watson, Shedeur Sanders, and rookie Taylen Green on the 53-man roster in Cleveland. Head coach Todd Monken indicated this summer that he was comfortable with that arrangement and did so again at a Monday press conference ahead of the roster move.
Tight end Carsen Ryan was waived in a corresponding move. He appeared in six games and saw almost all of his playing time on special teams.
The AFC North and NFC North are loaded, to an unprecedented extent in NFL history.
All eight teams in the two North divisions are above .500 after Week 7. Never before has the league had two divisions with every team having a winning record heading into Week 8.
The Browns lead the AFC North at 5-2 because they have the head-to-head tiebreaker with the 5-2 Steelers. The Bengals are 4-2 and the Ravens are 4-3.
The Vikings are 6-0, the only remaining undefeated team in the NFC. The Bears are in second place in the NFC North at 5-2, followed by the Lions at 4-2 and the Packers at 4-3.
If the playoffs started today, the Browns would be the No. 3 seed in the AFC. The Steelers would be the No. 6 seed and the Bengals would be the No. 7 seed. The Ravens would be out of the playoffs.
In the NFC, the Vikings would be the No. 1 seed and the three other teams would be the three wild cards: The Bears would be the No. 5 seed, the Lions would be No. 6 and the Packers would be No. 7 — as they have been each of the last three years.
We’re a long way from the playoffs, but right now, it looks like most of the biggest games down the stretch will be played in the North.
The Browns’ game-winning field goal in Nashville was set up by a 36-yard catch-and-run by tight end Harold Fannin Jr. But a pre-snap penalty probably should have been called.
Right tackle Dawand Jones left early. Watch the play. It was very early. Noticeably earlier than the move perfected in recent years by Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson, who routinely utilized the technique of going at the perfect moment to give him a jump on blocking the pass rusher without having the plug on the play pulled by a false-start penalty.
Jones didn’t just leave early. And he didn’t use the far more common single early step with his right foot. He jumped back, like he’d just seen a rattlesnake.
Yes, a similar play happened earlier in the quarter, with the Titans’ right tackle seemingly taking an early step. But that was far closer to the Johnson maneuver. The right leg moved a nanosecond before the snap started. When it’s that close, the officials don’t shut the play down.
Neither was flagged. The Jones play should have been.
Somehow, the Browns have done it again.
With a 32-yard field goal as time expired, kicker Andre Szmyt gave Cleveland a 27-24 victory over Tennessee, keeping the club in a tie for first place in the AFC North.
While the Titans had raced out to a 14-0 lead over the Browns — in part due to a Deshaun Watson interception — the Browns came back to take a 17-14 lead at halftime. Quinshon Judkins rushed for a pair of touchdowns and Szmyt hit a 28-yard field goal to go ahead.
That score held until the fourth quarter, when Joey Slye hit a 29-yard field goal to tie it up. The Browns responded with a Watson rushing touchdown, going up 24-17 with 4:34 left in the contest. But the Titans tied it up again with Tony Pollard’s third rushing touchdown of the day.
Once again, however, Watson was able to engineer a game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter. He hit tight end Harold Fannin over the middle for a catch-and-run, 36-yard gain — setting up Szmyt for a game-winning field goal.
Though Szmyt banged a 43-yard attempt off the right upright earlier in the fourth quarter, his 32-yard, game-winning attempt was true as time expired.
Watson played one of his best games in a Browns uniform, as the offense put up a season-high 491 yards. Cleveland’s previous high was 372 in the Week 4 win over Pittsburgh.
The quarterback finished 25-of-36 for 308 yards with an interception. It’s the first time Watson has thrown for 300 yards with the Browns. He also had three carries for 19 yards with a touchdown.
Watson has now led a fourth-quarter or overtime game-winning drive in all four of the Browns’ wins. The last time a Browns quarterback had at least five game-winning drives was Bernie Kosar in 1986.
KC Concepcion had eight catches for 129 yards, setting a new career high. He also had three carries for 23 yards.
Quinshon Judkins had his best game of the season, rushing for 96 yards with two TDs while also catching an 8-yard pass.
On the other side, Cam Ward was 20-of-31 for 181 yards with an interception. Pollard, who rushed for a career-high 161 when the Titans played the Browns last year, had 129 yards on 25 carries with three touchdowns. He also had three catches for 26 yards.
Titans punter Tommy Townsend suffered a knee injury and was unable to punt during the second half, with Joey Slye taking over the duties. Townsend stayed in the game to serve as a holder.
Now at 5-2, the Browns will be on the road again to face Pittsburgh with first place in the division on the line next week.
The 1-6 Titans will be on the road to play the Bengals.
The Browns got down early, but have been able to claw their way back against the Titans to take a 17-14 lead at halftime.
Tony Pollard rushed for two touchdowns to open the scoring, one of which came after a Deshaun Watson interception.
It looked like Pollard had a third touchdown, but after a review, it was determined he was down at the 1-yard line. And from there, the Browns’ defense stuffed Tennessee’s offense for a goal-line stand, beginning to turn the tide.
A Denzel Ward interception led to Quinshon Judkins’ second touchdown of the half with 2:17 left in the second quarter, tying the game. Then after a Titans punt, the Browns executed a two-minute drill to take the lead with Andre Szmyt’s 28-yard field goal as time expired in the first half.
Rookie receiver KC Concepcion has been the star for Cleveland, catching eight passes for 129 yards on nine targets in the first half. He entered the day with 186 receiving yards in the season’s first six games, and will have a chance to double that in the second half.
Watson is 17-of-22 for 202 yards. Judkins had 55 yards on 10 carries with a pair of TDs.
Pollard has a season-high 92 yards on 16 carries with two TDs. Cam Ward is 7-of-11 for 58 yards with a pick.
The Titans do have a concern with their punter, as Tommy Townsend went down late in the second quarter with an apparent leg injury. He was able to walk off the field under his own power.
The Browns will receive the second-half kickoff.
So far, it’s been all Titans in Nashville.
Tony Pollard has been running all over Cleveland’s defense, and a turnover has helped Tennessee build an early 14-0 lead.
Pollard capped the Titans’ opening possession with a 36-yard touchdown run — giving Tennessee its first opening-drive touchdown of the season.
Then Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson threw an interception on his second pass attempt of the day, setting up Tennessee at Cleveland’s 24-yard line.
On the fourth play of the possession, Pollard again ended up in the end zone with a 10-yard touchdown run.
Pollard already has a season-high 77 yards rushing on eight carries. The last time Pollard played the Browns — last December — he rushed for a career-high 161 yards.
The Jets won’t be getting running back Breece Hall back in the lineup for Sunday’s home date against the Dolphins.
Hall was listed as questionable on Friday due to the quad injury that’s kept him out for the last two games, but he wound up on the wrong side of that decision when the team released its inactive list for Week 7. Hall was limited in practice during the week and a move to full practice may be necessary for him to get back in the lineup.
Braelon Allen has 41 carries for 194 yards and a touchdown as the starter in Hall’s absence.
While Hall remains out, the Jets will be getting wide receiver Adonai Mitchell back in the lineup. He’s missed the last four games with a finger injury.
Dolphins at Jets
Dolphins: LB Willie Gay, WR Jalen Tolbert, CB Marcellas Dial, CB Reese Taylor, DE Rob Beal, OL DJ Campbell, OT Chukwuebuka Godrick
Jets: CB Jarvis Brownlee, RB Kene Nwangwu, RB Breece Hall, LB Joseph Ossai, OL Max Mitchell, G Dylan Parham, DL Jack Heflin
49ers at Falcons
49ers: DE Nick Bosa, WR Mike Evans, WR Deebo Samuel, LB Luke Gifford, LB Garret Wallow, S Marques Sigle, QB Kurtis Rourke
Falcons: QB Jack Strand, LB Divine Deablo, CB Avieon Terrell, QB Andy Dalton, WR Olamide Zaccheaus, RB Brian Robinson, DB Billy Bowman
Giants at Texans
Giants: OL Josh Sills, TE Theo Johnson, OL Marcus Mbow, CB Greg Newsome, CB Nikko Reed, S Jevon Holland, QB Jake Haener
Texans: T Blake Fisher, G Febechi Nwaiwu, T Nathan Thomas, TE Marlin Klein, RB David Montgomery, S Jalen Pitre, S Reed Blankenship
Bengals at Ravens
Bengals: S Russ Yeast, C Connor Lew, OT Myles Hinton, DE Shemar Stewart, DT Landon Robinson
Ravens: QB Lamar Jackson, S Jaylinn Hawkins, WR Elijah Sarratt, G Andrew Vorhees, DT Broderick Washington
Buccaneers at Panthers
Buccaneers: DL DeMonte Capehart, WR Emeka Egbuka, CB Ayden Garnes, T Luke Goedeke, G Billy Schrauth, S Antoine Winfield Jr.
Panthers: TE Ja’Tavion Sanders, LB Jaelan Phillips, QB Haynes King, RB AJ Dillon, C Sam Hecht, OT Stone Forsythe, DT TeRah Edwards
Colts at Vikings
Colts: LB Bryce Boettcher, LB CJ Allen, CB Sauce Gardner, TE Tyler Warren, WR Anthony Gould, G Dalton Tucker, QB Riley Leonard
Vikings: S Jakobe Thomas, QB Max Brosmer, CB Chuck Demmings, RB Demond Claiborne, OT Caleb Tiernan, DL Elijah Williams
Browns at Titans
Browns: QB Taylen Green, LB Justin Jefferson, CB Noah Igbinoghene, RB Audric Estime, DT Mike Hall Jr., C Parker Brailsford
Titans: WR Calvin Ridley, RB Tyjae Spears, RB Nick Singleton, TE Kylen Granson, OT Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, DT Jackie Marshall, CB Jaylon Jones
The contract year of veteran defensive tackle Maliek Collins has resulted after only six games in new contact.
Agent Drew Rosenhaus tells ESPNFL that the Browns and Collins have reached agreement on a two-year, $30 million extension. The deal includes, per Rosenhaus, $23 million in guarantees.
Collins had signed a two-year, $20 million deal with the Browns in 2025. He was due to be a free agent in March.
The 31-year-old Collins was a third-round pick in 2016 of the Cowboys. After four years in Dallas, he spent one season with the Raiders, three with the Texans, and one with the 49ers before joining the Browns.
Collins has started all six games this year for the 4-2 Browns. Last year, he appeared in 12 games, all starts.
For his career, Collins has 154 regular-season appearances with 147 starts.
The Browns have activated running back Dylan Sampson from injured reserve, the team announced.
Sampson went on injured reserve with a knee injury on Sept. 15. He was designated for return on Oct. 14 and has no injury designation for Sunday’s game against the Titans.
Sampson, a fourth-round pick in 2025, has appeared in 16 career games. He has recorded 175 career rushing yards on 65 attempts, while adding 33 receptions for 271 yards with two touchdowns.
In a corresponding move, the team placed offensive guard Teven Jenkins on injured reserve with a back injury.
The Browns also elevated defensive tackle Sam Kamara from the practice squad.
In addition, safety Grant Delpit has cleared concussion protocol and has no injury status for Sunday.
