Cleveland Browns send wrong message signing Rico Gathers, waiving Orson Charles

Not long after claiming they won’t put up with Antonio Callaway’s missteps, the Cleveland Browns waived Orson Charles and signed a suspended Rico Gathers

Back in 2016, the Dallas Cowboys took a sixth-round flyer on former basketball player Rico Gathers. He hadn’t played organized football since middle school but intrigued teams with his size and athleticism. Gathers never put it all together though and was recently waived by Dallas, and then went unclaimed on waivers.

He wasn’t out of work long though, as the Cleveland Browns added him to the roster on Sunday and released tight end/fullback Orson Charles — who had seemed like a lock to make the 53-man roster.

While at first glance this move seems small, it could actually have a larger impact than intended. On the heels of wide receiver Antonio Callaway‘s suspension, the Browns added another player who has had his own red flags related to marijuana. Gathers joins Cleveland despite the fact that he will be suspended one game for a 2018 arrest for marijuana possession.

It’s really poor timing as the Browns have tried to act like a team that’s going to take a hard stance against off-field behavior. Just two days before signing Gathers, head coach Freddie Kitchens was adamant that they wouldn’t put up with indiscretions.

"“We’re not willing to put up with it, OK?’’ Kitchens said of Callaway’s misstep via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. “When you start talking in terms of that, the person that it’s affected has to be willing to commit to doing what’s right. So if he’s willing to commit to doing what’s right, then we’re willing to support him in every way that we can, and that’s what we’re going to do until he proves us wrong.’’"

That’s fine to say, but there’s really no evidence that there’s any truth to that. Cleveland not only looked the other way last season with Callaway but they also seem willing to look past this past incident.

They’ve also been willing to add players with even bigger indiscretions as they signed running back Kareem Hunt who was released by the Kansas City Chiefs for shoving and kicking a woman.

It’s due to these signings that general manager John Dorsey is getting a reputation for signing troubled players. As soon as Hunt was released, the ties were there to the Browns. The same kind of chatter was going on when there was a concern that the Chiefs could release Tyreek Hill had he been found guilty of child abuse.

This isn’t all being said to insinuate the Browns like troubled kids, or that they should never take a chance on anyone. And in the case of Gathers, he has shown some flashes of being an athletic playmaker, it’s just that those flashes have only come in the preseason as he has only three receptions and 45 yards to his name in the regular season.

However, signing a player with the same off-field concerns as Callaway just days after trying to take a verbal hard line with him sure sends mixed signals.

It’s even more concerning when a player such as Charles, who has done everything right, is the one who is let go in favor of a suspended player.