Sheldon Richardson Closes Door On Return To Browns

According to Mary Kay Cabot, former Browns DT Sheldon Richardson has ruled out returning to Cleveland.

The Browns cut Richardson in a salary-saving move earlier this offseason after signing DE Jadeveon Clowney. Cabot says Cleveland hoped to bring him back but Richardson has decided he wants a fresh start. 

The veteran will now continue his free agency tour, which has been relatively quiet so far. No visits have been reported for Richardson yet, although some have connected the dots to former teams like the Seahawks and Vikings who still could use help at defensive tackle. 

Richardson, 30, is a former first-round pick of the Jets back in 2013. He played out the final year of his four-year, $10.054 million rookie contract but the Jets elected to pick up his fifth-year option. 

From there, the Jets traded Richardson to the Seahawks for WR Jermaine Kearse and 2018 second-round pick. However, Richardson played out his contract and later signed a one-year contract with the Vikings. 

The Browns signed Richardson to a three-year, $36 million contract in 2019 before releasing him a few weeks ago. 

In 2020, Richardson appeared in all 16 games for the Browns and recorded 64 tackles, 4.5 sacks, a forced fumble and three pass deflections. Pro Football Focus had him rated as the No. 48 interior defender out of 126 qualifying players. 

We have him included in our Top 100 Available 2021 Free Agents list.