The Cleveland Browns were close to reunions with both Jadeveon Clowney and Za’Darius Smith this offseason, but each pass-rusher slipped through the team’s proverbial fingers and landed with the Houston Texans and Atlanta Falcons, respectively.
That left Cleveland, still searching for another defensive end, to turn to Jamil Muhammad. The Browns signed the 25-year-old defensive end on Wednesday, August 19.
“The Browns signed EDGE Jamil Muhammad, according to his agent,” TheDawgsPodcast Instagram account reported. “Muhammad signed with the [Los Angeles] Rams as a UDFA last season and then spent time on the [Carolina] Panthers practice squad. He played 5 years in college, including the final two at USC where he had 173 tackles, 7.5 sacks and 12 [tackles for loss].”
Browns Banking on Jared Verse to Lead Relatively Unproven, Inexperienced Group of Defensive Ends
GettyCleveland Browns pass-rusher Jared Verse.
Muhammad now joins a host of players hunting for a 53-man roster spot come the end of August. Among his competition is Isaiah McGuire, Julian Okwara, Logan Fano (the brother of first-round rookie and projected starting left tackle Spencer Fano) and Benton Whitley.
Jared Verse, whom the Browns acquired via the trade of Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams earlier this offseason, and Alex Wright are the likely starters who will bookend the Browns’ defensive line under new coordinator Mike Rutenberg.
Wright is a reasonable starter heading into his age-26 campaign, tallying five sacks in 2023 (16 games played, one start) and 5.5 sacks in 2025 (14 appearances, nine starts). He tallied just one sack in four contests during an injury-shortened campaign in 2024.
Meanwhile, Verse is among the top pass-rushers from the defensive end position in the entire league entering his third year. FOX Sports ranked Verse 10th overall at the edge defender position in 2026, while Pro Football Focus bestowed the No. 11 ranking (out of 115 qualifying players) on Verse for his work in 2025.
“While Verse has been among the league leaders in pressure rate since entering the league in 2024, he still only has 12 sacks in two seasons,” Eric D. Williams of FOX Sports wrote. “Verse must become a more consistent closer to be considered among the elite pass rushers in the league. For now, though, he’s in the top 10 as the Browns hope he can be a cornerstone moving forward.”
Garrett, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, finished first overall in FOX Sports’ ratings. PFF also ranked him No. 1 in 2025.
Alex Wright Does Not Necessarily Have Browns’ Starting Job Locked Up
GettyDefensive end Alex Wright of the Cleveland Browns.
Wright, who will play the upcoming campaign (his fifth in the NFL) at 26 years old, recently inked a three-year deal worth $33 million total.
While that is a meaningful second contract, it’s market value also indicates that Wright is a below-average starter at the position from a talent and production standpoint, particularly given his age and four years of professional experience.
Had Cleveland signed Clowney or Smith, either might have challenged Wright for the starting job and potentially pushed him back into the No. 3 role in the rotation.
It is unclear if anyone currently on the depth chart at DE can push Wright in the same way, but the addition of Muhammad on Wednesday indicates that Cleveland is going to continue to take flyers on pass-rushers to see if someone can step up in 2026.
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