4 XFL free agents Cleveland Browns need to sign

The XFL season has ended prematurely due to the Coronavirus, and are now free to look to the NFL. The Cleveland Browns should add these four players

Because the Coronavirus has resulted in the cancellation of the XFL season, the XFL will immediately release players from their contracts if the Cleveland Browns or other NFL team makes a credible contract offer, as reported by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk and NBC Sports.

Last season the Browns picked up two players from the Aardvarks of American Football (AAF) after it became defunct after a single season. Garrett Gilbert became the second-string quarterback, and D’Ernest Johnson returned kickoffs and punts while also performing well as a running back in very limited opportunities (four rushes for 21 yards and 4.1 yards per carry — although he added and six catches out of seven passing targets for 71 yards as a receiver out of the backfield. These players contributed, though neither are threats to become starters.

There are probably several XFL who will get tryouts in the NFL. Here are four players that this writer believes would have a shot to help the Cleveland Browns.

4. P.J. Walker, Quarterback, Houston Roughnecks

The most obvious is P. J. Walker, who is the XFL version of Russell Wilson. Undersized, but mobile and accurate, Walker was a dominant star, He threw for 267.6 yards per game, completed 64.7 percent of his passes, and boasted a 15-to-4 touchdown to interception ratio.

More importantly, he passes the eyeball test, displaying good judgment, intelligence and unquestionable leadership skills. The main knock on him is that he is short (5-foot-11) and we have been told a thousand times by knowledgeable experts that it is physically impossible to play quarterback if a player is under 6’0-foot-, right?

Well, Drew Brees and Russell Wilson did not get that memo, evidently, so maybe Walker is worth a shot. Walker also has speed and quickness to move around in the pocket, but he is not nearly the runner that Russell Wilson is.

Walker was a four-year starter for the Temple Owls, where he led them to a 10-4 record. Despite playing in the non-Power-Five FBS American Athletic Conference (AAC), they were nationally ranked at the end of the year after beating Navy. However, a loss in the Military Bowl to Wake Forest, a Power Five American Coast Conference team, knocked them out of the Top 25. In that game, Walker threw for 381 yards and two touchdowns, but was sacked four times and threw an interception. The Owls managed to rush for negative 20 yards the entire game.

Walker has had parts of three seasons of NFL football with the Indianapolis Colts practice team. It’s not crazy to think that he might be ready to claim a spot on an NFL roster.

As good as Walker is, he is not nearly the player with the best shot at helping the Browns. Please click the link below to meet three others who have a shot at the NFL and fit the Browns’ needs.