ON THE MOVE
Houston Texans receiver finds new home with Browns
Apr 29, 2025, 2:34 pm
ON THE MOVE
Wide receiver Diontae Johnson agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Cleveland Browns on Monday, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.
The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been announced. The move was first reported by NFL Network.
Cleveland will be the fourth team that Johnson has been on in a year. He began last season with Carolina before being traded to Baltimore in late October. Johnson — who led the Panthers with 30 receptions and 357 receiving yards at the time of the trade — had only one catch in four games for the Ravens when he refused to enter a Dec. 1 contest against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Johnson was suspended one game and then waived by the Ravens on Dec. 21. He was claimed by Houston and had three receptions, including one for 12 yards in the Texans' wild-card playoff win over the Chargers.
Johnson though was waived shortly after that game as Houston coach DeMeco Ryans said it didn't work out. Johnson was then claimed by Baltimore, but the Ravens did that in order to possibly get a compensatory pick in the 2026 draft.
The 28-year old Johnson has plenty of experience playing in the AFC North. He was drafted in the third round by Pittsburgh in 2019 and spent five seasons with the Steelers. His best year was in 2021 when he had 107 receptions for 1,161 yards and eight touchdowns.
Johnson joins a Browns receiving room that doesn't have many viable options other than Jerry Jeudy.
Who Johnson will be catching passes from during offseason workouts and training camp will be of more interest. Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett are expected to battle for Cleveland's starting quarterback job, but the Browns made things interesting during the draft with the selections of Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel.
Two first-place teams, identical records, and a weekend set with serious measuring-stick energy.
The Houston Astros and Chicago Cubs open a three-game series Friday night at Daikin Park, in what could quietly be one of the more telling matchups of the summer. Both teams enter at 48-33, each atop their respective divisions — but trending in slightly different directions.
The Astros have been red-hot, going 7-3 over their last 10 while outscoring opponents by 11 runs. They've done it behind one of the best pitching staffs in baseball, with a collective 3.41 ERA that ranks second in the American League. Houston has also been dominant at home, where they’ve compiled a 30-13 record — a stat that looms large heading into this weekend.
On the other side, the Cubs have held their ground in the NL Central but have shown some recent shakiness. They're 5-5 over their last 10 games and have given up 5.66 runs per game over that stretch. Still, the offense remains dangerous, ranking fifth in on-base percentage across the majors. Kyle Tucker leads the way with a .287 average, 16 homers, and 49 RBIs, while Michael Busch has been hot of late, collecting 12 hits in his last 37 at-bats.
Friday’s pitching matchup features Houston’s Brandon Walter (0-1, 3.80 ERA, 1.10 WHIP) and Chicago’s Cade Horton (3-1, 3.73 ERA, 1.29 WHIP), a promising young arm making one of his biggest starts of the season on the road. Horton will have his hands full with Isaac Paredes, who’s slugged 16 homers on the year, and Mauricio Dubón, who’s found a groove with four home runs over his last 10 games.
It’s the first meeting of the season between these two clubs — and if the trends continue, it may not be the last time they cross paths when it really counts.
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -112, Cubs -107; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
Here's a preview of Joe Espada's Game 1 lineup.
The first thing that stands out is rookie Cam Smith is hitting cleanup, followed by Jake Meyers. Victor Caratini is the DH and is hitting sixth. Christian Walker is all the way down at seventh, followed by Yainer Diaz, and Taylor Trammell who is playing left field.
How the mighty have fallen.
Pretty wild to see Walker and Diaz hitting this low in the lineup. However, it's justified, based on performance. Walker is hitting a pathetic .214 and Diaz is slightly better sporting a .238 batting average.
Screenshot via: MLB.com
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