Chiefs helmet Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Browns are such a disaster they’re ruining things for other teams.

After Deshaun Watson went down with an Achilles injury in Sunday’s loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, the Browns turned to second-year quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Then Thompson-Robinson went down and Cleveland had to turn to emergency quarterback Jameis Winston.

With the quarterback room so thin, Cleveland has resorted to taking from other teams.

According to NFL insider Tom Pelissero, the Browns have signed quarterback Bailey Zappe off of the Chiefs’ practice squad.

Please enable JavaScript to view the poll powered by Disqus.

People were interested in these podcasts
Play Episode
61min
The Play-By-Play
Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and Jason Kelce debut; Colt McCoy has rough broadcast
On the latest episode of The Play-By-Play, Awful Announcing's Brendon Kleen and Ben Axelrod discuss the Fox broadcasting debut of Tom Brady, the ESPN debut of Jason Kelce, Bill Belichick's numerous appearances. The guys also discuss the changes on "The NFL Today," Greg Olsen's pivot to the No. 2 Fox NFL broadcast booth, and Colt McCoy's rough broadcast.Time Stamps:-1:47: Tom Brady broadcast booth review-18:51: Bill Belichick analysis review-28:19: Jason Kelce “Monday Night Countdown” review-33:52: “The NFL Today” getting younger-36:04: Praise for Mike Greenberg hosting “Sunday NFL Countdown”-38:14: Greg Olsen with Joe Davis as Fox’s No. 2 NFL booth-39:34: Colt McCoy-45:14: “Out of the Darkness”-53:09: ESPN/NFL Media equity talks are offYou can subscribe to The Play-By-Play wherever podcasts are found. Please subscribe, rate and review! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Play-By-Play
Super Bowl storylines, sportsbooks dialing back sponsored content
Two weeks of Super Bowl coverage is going to bring repeated talking points. Sports betting companies are cutting funding for sponsored content. Awful Announcing's Ben Axelrod and Brendon Kleen discuss these topics and more, including Deion Sanders and the Dallas Cowboys on the latest episode of The Play-By-Play.Time Stamps:-2:23: Super Bowl storylines you’re going to get tired of hearing-6:09: The Super Bowl storyline draft-32:22: Sports betting companies cutting back on sponsored content-47:59: Awful Announcing’s new newsletter/Deion Sanders and the Dallas Cowboys-51:52: ESPN appYou can subscribe to The Play-By-Play wherever podcasts are found. Please subscribe, rate and review!Download The Play-By-Play:Listen on AppleListen on SpotifyAwful Announcing on XAwful Announcing on FacebookAwful Announcing on InstagramAwful Announcing on ThreadsAwful Announcing on BlueSkyAwful Announcing on LinkedIn Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Play-By-Play
‘Mr. McMahon’ doc, Zach Lowe out at ESPN, Kamala Harris on ‘All the Smoke’
After years since the announcement, "Mr. McMahon" debuted on Netflix. ESPN surprisingly lets go of Zach Lowe. Kamala Harris does a podcast and it's "All the Smoke?" Awful Announcing's Brendon Kleen and Ben Axelrod discuss these topics plus have some praise for "Scoop City" and Diana Taurasi's impact on the WNBA on the latest episode of The Play-By-Play.Time Stamps:-:57: “Mr. McMahon” Netflix docuseries thoughts-26:24: Zach Lowe out at ESPN-40:21: Kamala Harris on “All The Smoke”-44:45: “Scoop City” praise-48:04: Diana TaurasiYou can subscribe to The Play-By-Play wherever podcasts are found. Please subscribe, rate and review!Download The Play-By-Play:Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-play-by-play/id1763654809Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4HaEA8ssc7LpPoJ8pKT1hk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Play-By-Play
Red Sox comeback doc, Jason Kelce late night show, sports and politics collide
Election Day is coming and sports is an important part to both campaigns. The 2004 Boston Red Sox have a new docuseries on Netflix but who is it for? Jason Kelce getting a weekly late night show on ESPN? Awful Announcing's Ben Axelrod and Brendon Kleen discuss these topics and more, including discussing the passing of Cleveland Browns radio voice Jim Donovan, on the latest episode of The Play-By-Play.Time Stamps:-1:27: Chris Canty-6:26: Kendrick Perkins-7:49: ESPN breakthrough draft-25:31: “The Comeback: 2004 Boston Red Sox” on Netflix-36:31: Politics and the election in sports and sports media-50:58: Jim Donovan’s passing-54:32: Jason Kelce weekly late night ESPN showYou can subscribe to The Play-By-Play wherever podcasts are found. Please subscribe, rate and review!Download The Play-By-Play:Listen on AppleListen on SpotifyAwful Announcing on XAwful Announcing on FacebookAwful Announcing on InstagramAwful Announcing on ThreadsAwful Announcing on BlueSkyAwful Announcing on LinkedIn Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fans reacted to the poaching online.

“That’s a good pickup, both Zappe and Winston are leagues better than Watson. Not that it takes much,” one fan said on Twitter.

“Pray for Bailey, he is going from the best org to one of the worst, he will need our support in this time of hardship,” one fan added.

“Bailey Zappe is a good addition to browns,” one fan added.

“I wish the best for zappe and mac. They were patriots when it wasn’t cool. It still isn’t cool. Gm wolf dropped the ball a la bill by not attending to their glaring weakness. O line. Their #1 pick in 2025 draft pick should either be traded for a top LT and WR or used on an LT,” a New England Patriots fan added.

“Zappe actually looked good when he stepped in. With Stefanski I bet he turns out solid,” one fan added.

“As a Browns fan, welcome to Cleveland. I’m sorry, in advance. I’m sure you deserve better,” one fan said.

It’s a tough break for Zappe, who probably never imagined he’d have to spend significant time in Cleveland, Ohio.

[Tom Pelissero]

About Qwame Skinner

Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. At Next Impulse, Qwame covers sports with the same enthusiasm he brings to his recreational basketball and softball leagues.