After purchasing the franchise back in 2012, the Haslam family recently made a move to sell a very small portion of their share.
Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports Hall of Fame cornerback Charles Woodson is buying a 0.1 percent stake in the Cleveland Browns from the Haslams. Woodson joins Tom Brady and Richard Seymour as the most recent former players to get in the business side of the sport. For comparison, Brady has about a 5 percent share while Seymour is around 0.5 percent.
Charles Woodson set to buy minority stake in Browns
Woodson spent 18 years in the NFL and won one Super Bowl to go along with a Defensive Player of the Year Award and three All-Pro selections. Buckeye fans remember him vividly for his role in the rivalry at Michigan, where he won a National Championship and Heisman Trophy and led the Wolverines to a 3-0 record against Ohio State.
Before his fame from his tremendous success in college and the NFL, Woodson grew up in Fremont, Ohio and attended Ross High School. He won Ohio's "Mr. Football" Award in 1994 for his 2,028 rushing yards in his senior season, while setting his school's record with 3,861 career rushing yards. Woodson played both ways in high school and even a little bit in college before going full-time defense in the NFL.
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Per Russini, "The sale is contingent upon Woodson agreeing to similar broadcasting restrictions to Raiders owner Tom Brady and removing his name, image, and likeness from businesses he is involved in."
Brady's league restrictions include limitations regarding access to team facilities, players, or coaches. Additionally, he has to follow the league's rules about public criticism of other teams. When it comes to the restrictions on his personal businesses, this will prevent Woodson from being allowed to use his branding in any way in his wine and whiskey businesses due to the NFL's alcohol policy.
It's unclear whether Woodson will have a role like Brady, who is actively helping the team behind the scenes. Woodson's tremendous success at every level of football would likely make him a good resource, but this is interesting news even if it's purely business-related from Woodson's side.