The Cleveland Browns needed to find a tight end in the 2026 NFL Draft, and with their preferred targets off the board on Day 2, they stayed local to find an intriguing pickup for head coach Todd Monken's depth chart.
Cincinnati Bearcats product Joe Royer wasn't on a lot of people's radars, but there are some interesting parallels that, at worst, make for a cool story.
Thirteen years ago, a teary-eyed Travis Kelce begged the Browns to take him, but to no avail. Now, the Browns have taken another Ohio-born tight end out of Cincinnati — and he just so happens to have broken one of Kelce's school records.
As reported by Browns insider Daniel Oyefusi, Royer set a mark for most single-season receptions by a tight end in program history (50) back in 2024. He earned First Team All-Big 12 honors that season, and he kept his foot on the gas pedal by averaging 9.0 yards after the catch in 2025, the third-best mark among FBS tight ends.
Joe Royer’s record-setting production adds intrigue to a painfully familiar Browns storyline
The Browns already have a budding star at tight end in Harold Fannin Jr., but Monken likes to have two tight ends on the field who can affect the passing game. If things go well, Royer could be the Isiah Likely to Fannin's Mark Andrews. Expecting a Travis Kelce-like breakout might be wishful thinking, but there are some clear similarities.
Like Kelce, Royer is a smooth athlete with a knack for adding yards after the catch. He also has strong hands, not registering a single drop last season after dropping four passes in 2024.
Kelce's elite route-running skills were next level for the tight end position, though. Royer is also not the same improviser in the open field — because no one is.
The Browns already have some blocking tight ends on the roster in Jack Stoll and Blake Whiteheart, but neither of them are big enough threats in the passing game. Royer isn't going to take a ton of targets from Fannin, but as the 15th tight end off the board, he was the safest bet at a sneaky position of need. Given the Browns' surplus of draft capital, it was certainly a gamble worth taking.
We've seen how Monken's offense has thrived with multiple tight ends, dating back to his days as the offensive coordinator at Georgia. He already has his version of Brock Bowers on the team in Fannin, and Royer has the athleticism and experience to be an instant contributor for a Browns team that was desperate for help in the pass-catching department entering the draft.
More than a decade ago, the Browns regretted ignoring Kelce's plea to play for his hometown team and stay in Ohio. Royer wound up putting up better numbers than him in college, and while that doesn't mean that he's going to be nearly half as good as his predecessor, who knows? Sports have a funny way of giving decision-makers a second chance to right previous wrongs.