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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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The Cleveland Browns have been one of the biggest surprises this NFL season. They enter Sunday's clash with the Tennessee Titans at 4-2 overall and sitting atop the AFC North. After opening with a bad 34-10 loss against the Jaguars in Jacksonville, the Browns have now won four of their last five games, with wins over the Buccaneers, Panthers, Steelers, and Ravens. Their only other loss was a narrow 17-12 defeat against the Jets at MetLife Stadium in Week 5.
Their defense has been physical and aggressive all season, allowing the eighth-fewest passing yards per game (205.2) and fifth-fewest points (20.3 per game). Their offense, however, is averaging just 267.5 total yards per game (fourth-worst) and 17.7 points per game (fifth-worst). Cleveland are still the favorites Sunday against the 1-5 Titans, but they'll need a better showing from their offense to guarantee a win.
Thankfully, with less than 24 hours to go before kickoff, the Browns just received a significant boost to their offense. Second-year running back Dylan Sampson has officially been activated from injured reserve, and he is expected to play Sunday against Tennessee, according to NFL insider Adam Schefter.
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Cleveland also placed offensive guard Teven Jenkins on IR due to a back injury, meaning he will miss at least the next four games. Safety Grant Delpit, meanwhile, cleared concussion protocol and has no injury designation heading into Sunday.
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Sampson was the Browns' fourth-round pick out of Tennessee in the 2025 NFL Draft, and he came on strong as a rookie. Across 15 games last season, he rushed for 175 yards on 65 carries and was their top pass-catching running back, hauling in 33 catches for 271 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns. That was with him playing behind second-rounder Quinshon Judkins for much of the year.
Unfortunately, Sampson's 2026 season was interrupted almost immediately, suffering a knee injury on a kickoff return in Cleveland's season-opening loss against Jacksonville. He was placed on IR two days later and missed the Browns' next five games before returning to practice.
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Getting Sampson back gives Cleveland another option out of the backfield alongside Judkins, who is expected to play after missing last week's game with an ankle injury. Judkins, however, has struggled to get going on the ground this season when healthy, with just 221 rushing yards and one touchdown on 73 carries (3.0 yards per carry) through five games.
Sampson's receiving ability could help Deshaun Watson and the offense sustain drives, and given Judkins' recent struggles, he should get the chance to take on a substantial role in the ground game in his first game back.
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