Cleveland Browns

Jaelen Strong feels Odell Beckham's pain -- with the ex-Browns WR claiming the Cleveland training staff mishandled his own knee injury before he was cut in August.

25-year-old Strong missed the 2018 NFL season after suffering a torn ACL during his stint with the Jacksonville Jaguars ... but healed up and signed with the Browns in Feb. 2019.

Cleveland was expecting big things from the former Houston Texans 3rd round draft pick -- which is why many were surprised to see him get his walking papers during the preseason.

Now, Strong is sounding off about his time in Cleveland ... essentially accusing the team of ignoring his constant knee pain -- and working him so hard, his body nearly broke.

Strong is specifically pointing to the Browns preseason training regimen -- claiming the team ran an "unheard of" 30 straight padded practices ... which took a serious toll on the players.

"We played a full season in camp. The real season is here and they are already behind the 8 ball. Hamstring issues at DB? That’s just saying they’re being overworked!!!!"

As for Strong's case ... the WR claims team doctors knew his body was suffering from the intense camp -- "my knee swelled up day after day" -- but he was never offered a recovery day off.

"We get to week 3 of preseason and I can barely walk," Strong says ... "I was dead ... body legs etc."

The Browns ultimately cut Strong on August 27 after he performed poorly in a preseason game -- but notes, "the Browns knew why I looked and felt the way I felt after making play after play in camp for 30 straight padded practices."

The claims come days after Browns QB Baker Mayfield called out the Browns training staff for mishandling Odell Beckham's sports hernia injury, which he also suffered during the preseason.

Jay Glazer says the Browns need a major "culture change" -- and quickly -- telling TMZ Sports straight-up "things gotta change" if they ever want to be real contenders.

Earlier this week, the FOX Sports star said Odell Beckham wasn't happy in Cleveland -- and had been telling other teams to "come get me."

Glazer also predicted Odell will leave Cleveland after the season ends -- saying, "I don't see that relationship ending well for them after this year."

So, when we saw Glazer at Craig's in L.A., we asked if the problem is Odell or the Browns.

"Odell's still great," Glazer said ... "Just gotta find the right fit."

"I think they need a culture change. That's gotta change."

When asked if that culture change involved a coaching change -- Glazer wouldn't say. But, it almost feels like Glazer is implying the organization needs an even bigger shakeup.

Brandon Marshall is calling for MERCY for Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens -- telling TMZ Sports the guy should get another shot in Year 2 ... with one serious caveat.

Of course, calling the Browns underachievers under Kitchens is a massive understatement ... they've got an insanely talented roster but have only managed to get 5 wins.

And, after Kitchen rocked a "Pittsburgh Started It" shirt -- making light of the Myles Garrett helmet attack days before the Steelers rematch -- many are calling for the ax.

But, not Marshall ... at least, not yet.

"I didn't like him wearing that shirt. It made no sense for him to do that. Nothing that justifies that," Marshall said ... "But, I hate letting a coach go in the first year."

Marshall suggested keeping Kitchens around for a Prove-It year 2 ... but "he's gotta turn it around" -- explaining there's a serious problem with the culture in Cleveland.

"There are some cultural things he's gotta fix."

As for Baker Mayfield, Marshall's optimistic about him too ... saying it appears the QB has turned a corner and is starting to show he can be the guy in CLE.

Baker Mayfield isn't the only one in his family ripping Cleveland Browns reporters in public -- his wife is getting in on the action too!!

After the Browns lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers (sealed by a Mayfield interception) Emily Mayfield went on social media Sunday to blast Browns beat reporter Mary Kay Cabot.

Cabot had asked Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens about his decision to wear a "Pittsburgh Started It" shirt before the game ... a clear reference to the Myles Garrett helmet attack incident a few weeks ago.

Emily Mayfield had an issue with Cabot's decision to ask the COMPLETELY FAIR question ... and took to Twitter to call her out.

"Why is this the focus of your questions? 🤔 MUCH more to focus on than that.... @MaryKayCabot."

Cabot responded, "I asked exactly one t-shirt question after the game. I asked Baker what he thought of it, and he defended Kitchens, which I thought was pretty cool. He gave a great answer, saying 'I’ve done much worse.' Funny, and struck the right note."

When a fan chimed in and sarcastically pressed Emily, she stood her ground.

"Please Mrs. Baker enlighten all of us as to what the focus should be on? Questionable play calling, veterans missing practice, inability to get the ball to playmakers, inability to have guys coming off injury and know the playbook, poor clock management? Where should we focus?"

Mayfield wrote back, "Football, in general, would be a good start."

Obviously, Cabot is in the right here ... Kitchens intentionally wore a controversial, provocative shirt referencing the BIGGEST controversy in football this year. Plus, as Cabot mentions in her article, a Steelers player said it "motivated" the team to beat Cleveland.

Of course, reporters should ask Kitchens about the shirt.

What's funny is just a few weeks ago, Baker Mayfield blasted a Browns reporter for asking football questions ... and kept pointing out the reporter didn't know what he was talking about because he never played in the NFL.

Everybody needs a friend like Odell Beckham Jr. ... 'cause the Cleveland Browns superstar just gave his teammate and best bro, Jarvis Landry, an incredible $110k watch for his birthday!!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... OBJ wanted to do something extra special for Landry's 27th birthday on Nov. 28, so he hooked him up with a Patek Phlippe 5980 Nautilus ... and it's beautiful.

We're told Odell hit up his go-to guy Gabriel The Jeweler to make it happen ... and the dude came through in the clutch just in time for Landry's big day.

Of course, Gabriel has an NFL roster's worth of clients -- from Stefon Diggs to Landry to Antonio Brown -- and we know how much Odell loves watches, so it was the perfect gift!!!

Landry and Beckham go WAYYYYY back -- they're both from New Orleans and have been best friends since they were freshmen in high school. They went on to dominate at LSU and have reunited together on the Browns.

Here's Myles Garrett in the middle of a PR offensive ... 'cause just days after his indefinite NFL ban was upheld for being a violent monster -- he showed up to a charity event to prove he's actually a nice guy!

The Cleveland Browns superstar's reputation has been under fire ever since he attacked Mason Rudolph with a helmet -- but now, the image rehab process is clearly underway.

The 23-year-old showed up to a Cleveland Feed the Need event Tuesday and said all the right things to try to show he deserves a place again in the NFL next season.

"I love to be out here just helping," Garrett said ... "I just love giving back. That's it. There's nothing more to it."

It's a smart move by Myles, considering even dudes like Michael Vick think he bungled everything that's gone down since his violent incident in the Browns-Steelers game earlier this month.

Garrett was asked how he's dealing with the backlash from helmetgate ... to which he replied, "You have ups and downs in your life and right now, I'm giving back to people."

Looks like the NFL isn't letting the Steelers' quarterback, Mason Rudolph, off the hook in the fallout from the fight he was involved in with Browns player Myles Garrett.

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com, a source is saying that Rudolph has been hit with a $50,000 fine for his role in the brawl from last Thursday. Reportedly, other players will be and already have been fined -- including some who left the bench at the time.

It doesn't sound like Rudolph will be suspended though -- based on Rapoport's early reporting, it appears he's just getting knocked financially. BTW, he signed a 4-year contract with the team last year for $3.9 million ... so this is like a slap on the wrist.

It's interesting that these punishments are being handed down so late, considering the Rudolph-Garrett fiasco has been the talk of pro-sports for about a week now. At first, people thought Rudolph would get through this unscathed -- but clearly, that didn't happen.

Of course, Garrett was suspended indefinitely, which he appealed ... but the NFL's penalty was ultimately upheld.

Funny enough, tons of people -- including prominent members of the media -- made note of Rudolph seemingly escalating things on the football field when he was aggressively taken down by Garrett on a last-second play to end the game. Many have said he purposely put his cleat into Garrett's groin and then went after him when he got his helmet taken off.

Adding insult to injury, Garrett came out just this past week to claim Rudolph hurled a racial slur at him, which prompted him to swing the helmet. Rudolph denied that, and the NFL also publicly said it found no evidence of any such slur in their investigation.

Makes ya wonder if the league caved to public pressure and doled out this late punishment to make things look a little more even now that everyone's spoken their piece on it.

Myles Garrett told NFL officials Steelers QB Mason Rudolph hurled a racial slur at him before the infamous helmet attack ... though Rudolph is calling BS.

As we previously reported, the Cleveland Browns star met with NFL officials to appeal the length of his suspension from the Nov. 14 incident.

During the meeting, Garrett told his side of the story ... and claimed it was a racial slur from Rudolph that got him so pissed off, he ripped off the QB's helmet and attacked him with it, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

But, Rudolph is VEHEMENTLY denying the claim -- his lawyer has already issued a statement calling the allegation a flat-out lie.

"This false allegation was never asserted by Garrett in the aftermath of the game, never suggested prior to the hearing, and conspicuously absent in the apology published by the Browns and adopted by Garrett."

"The malicious use of this wild and unfounded allegation is an assault on Mason's integrity which is far worse than the physical assault witnessed on Thursday."

"This is reckless and shameful."

Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens just addressed the situation at Browns practice on Thursday, saying, "I stand by Myles and that's not going to waver. I'll support Myles in every way possible."

Kitchens refused to disclose what he and Myles talked about following the incident.

Story developing ...

Myles Garrett made sure he LOOKED GOOD when meeting with NFL officials in NYC to appeal his helmet attack suspension ... rockin' a pretty sweet blue suit and turtleneck combo!

Will the fashion statement help get his suspension reduced? Probably not ... but man, Garrett looked stylish as hell!

Of course, the Cleveland Browns star is begging for mercy from the NFL after officials suspended him for the remainder of the 2019 season for swinging a helmet at Steelers QB Mason Rudolph on Thursday.

Garrett believes the punishment is too harsh -- especially since other NFL helmet swingers got much lighter sentences in the past.

In fact, ESPN's Dan Graziano says Garrett referenced Antonio Smith when making his case -- pointing out Smith only got a 3-game suspension when he used a helmet to attack Richie Incognito during a game in 2013.

The other side of the argument ... Garrett has a history of dirty play in 2019 -- he punched Delanie Walker and got fined $50k and racked up 2 bad roughing the passer penalties, including a season-ending hit on Jets QB Trevor Siemian.

Mason Rudolph is admitting he shouldn't have tried ripping Myles Garrett's helmet off his head during last week's brawl ... but is adamant he didn't say anything to spark the attack.

The Steelers QB read a prepared statement at practice on Wednesday ... saying, “Thursday night, to say the least, it was an unfortunate situation for everyone involved."

“Looking back on the final play of the game, I fell short of the mark there too. I should have done a better job of keeping my cool in that situation."

As for the speculation he may have said something to put Garrett over the edge ... Rudolph claims he said nothing.

“Definitely didn’t say anything. I got to do a better job of keeping my composure in those situations.”

It's a big change of tune from Rudolph's comments last week when the QB called Garrett's actions "cowardly" and "bush league" ... despite trying to yank the Browns star's helmet off and appearing to kick him where it hurts.

Rudolph says he hopes to move past the situation and has no ill will towards Garrett.

Regarding punishment, Rudolph says he hasn't received a letter from the NFL ... while Garrett is meeting with the league today to appeal his indefinite suspension.

Brad Paisley is a MASSIVE Cleveland Browns fan -- and you can tell he's genuinely sad about the incident with Myles Garrett ... explaining why the helmet-swing was heartbreaking to watch.

"Wish he hadn't done what he did," the country music superstar tells TMZ Sports ... "It's crazy. He shouldn't have done that."

Paisley has spent a lot of time around the Browns (remember his "Hard Knocks" cameo at training camp?) ... and says he's heard Garrett is a good dude, which makes it harder to understand why he went so crazy against the Pittsburgh Steelers last week.

"I'd love to know what he's thinking. I'm sure he's remorseful."

Even if Garrett can bounce back from the scandal, Paisley says he'll NEVER win back Steelers fans ... saying, "Pittsburgh will never forgive him, I'm sure."

As for the punishment, Paisley says he'll support whatever suspension the NFL eventually dishes out -- "He needs to serve that time, whatever they decide that is."

The league has already suspended Garrett for the rest of the year, but he's appealing this week and the punishment COULD change (maybe).

So, why is Paisley -- who's from West Virginia -- a Browns fan? It all stems back to Brian Sipe ... (betcha didn't think you'd see that name today!)

Here's a video to help explain ...

Myles Garrett is a good person who made one HUGE mistake ... so says ex-Browns asst. coach Bob Wylie who tells TMZ Sports the helmet-swinging maniac is "not the real Myles Garrett I know."

You probably remember Wylie from "Hard Knocks" -- he worked alongside Garrett as an assistant coach from 2017-18 (remember the belly-shaking "set, HUT!").

Wylie says he was disappointed to see the DE weaponize a helmet against Mason Rudolph during Thursday night's game against the Steelers ... but hopes it doesn't permanently ruin MG's reputation.

"He's not a bad person, he's a real good kid and he plays a violent sport," Wylie says.

"You play right on the edge and he plays right on the edge of the sport. And, he went over the edge."

The former offensive line coach says Garrett is a model teammate who went out of his way to help Wylie's guys ... and he NEVER saw an outburst like that before.

"All the times I spent with him on the practice field and in meetings, I never saw that Myles. I saw his effort, I saw his ability to compete, I saw his study habits ... but I never saw that."

Odell Beckham has been sorta privately dating an absolute BABE for months -- but they've finally gone IG official!

OBJ's lady is Lauren Wood -- a model/actress who's appeared on shows like "Ballers" and "Wild 'N Out." Her Instagram page is also FIRE!!!

Wood had been spotted at Browns games supporting the WR -- even hanging with Odell's mom -- but they hadn't taken their relationship public ... until this week!

Wood wished Beckham a happy birthday (he turned 27 on Tuesday) and posted a few pics of the two hanging out ... one shot featured the couple in bed together!

"Happy birthday @obj ! Your soul is pure gold. U know I can write lot about you, but I rather keep passing these love letters," Wood wrote.

"PS this blurry will always be my fave pic of us bc wtf is going on lol yumiii af."

Beckham commented back saying, "YUMI ... I’m riding wit u, I got ur back. U kno what it is. LOVE queen!"

BOOM! OFFICIAL!

Baker Mayfield's wife, Emily, commented, "Cuties💕 love u guys!"

So, there you have it ... happy off the field, not so much on it!

Baker Mayfield is breaking down his decision to shave right before AND right after the Browns' devastating loss to the Broncos on Sunday ... saying he "didn't deserve" to wear a handlebar mustache.

Aside from Cleveland's awful performance, the most notable takeaway from Sunday was Baker's facial hair switcharoo -- shaving his beard to a handlebar look for the game, and then chopping it down to a porn 'stache for post-game interviews.

Baker explained his decision after practice on Wednesday ... saying he had been undefeated while wearing the handlebar look ... and after the Browns took their 6th L of the season, he felt he wasn't worthy.

"The quarterbacks had a 'Movember' mustache, and the original thought for me, do handlebars," Mayfield said.

"I was undefeated before Sunday with the handlebar mustache, so I shaved it off cause I didn’t deserve it."

Baker also weighed in on his stats being a LOT worse than in his rookie campaign ... and unlike last week's presser, he seemed calm in the pocket and admitted he's not playing great right now.

Michael Vick is still riding STRONG with Baker Mayfield -- telling TMZ Sports he believes the Browns QB can still turn things around ... IF HE THROWS TO ODELL!!

"Baker's my dude," Vick says ... "Just keep pluggin'. All the outside noise, you're gonna get that. You gotta be mentally tough at the quarterback position."

Of course, Mayfield's come under fire lately because ... to put it simply ... the Browns are back to being the Browns, with a lackluster 2-6 record.

And, Baker's been getting crushed in the media for his stat line -- 7 TDs and 12 INTs -- having only thrown to Odell during Red Zone opportunities 3 TIMES this year!

"At the end of the day, he gotta throw the ball to Odell Beckham," Vick says.

FYI, Beckham was so frustrated with the situation in CLE, he reportedly said after the Broncos game, "I can’t get the ball to save my life."

But, it's clear in our video, Vick isn't turning on the QB -- he still thinks Baker is the key to the future in Cleveland.

"He's got a long career ahead of him. Gotta start winning more than losing."

Jermaine Whitehead has now seen the error of his and has apologized for threatening to shoot and kill fans on social media.

Oh, and the apology comes 24 hours after he was cut by the Cleveland Browns.

In a statement that essentially reads "please, somebody hire me" -- the 26-year-old defensive back tries desperately to show remorse for the aggressive Twitter rant that got him suspended online and fired from his job.

"I would like to take this opportunity to apologize for my actions following our game with Denver," Whitehead said.

"That was totally out of character for me. I do not justify my actions, but was extremely frustrated with the way I had played and our team losing because of it. I was playing with a broken hand, but that is no excuse for my actions, and I am deeply regretful."

Remember, minutes after the Browns lost to the Denver Broncos ... Whitehead went on social media and began clapping back at his critics.

"Imma kill you bitch ... that's on blood," he told one guy.

"Don't get shot at lil bitch ... can you whoop my ass .. .f*ck football .. let me know when you need the address," he told another.

When one fan asked for Whitehead's address, the NFL player gave out the address to the Cleveland Browns facility in Ohio.

The Browns cut him first thing Monday morning and now Whitehead is trying to find a new job. Hence the apology ...

"I want to personally apologize to anyone who I offended, especially those who I was responsive to on Twitter. My choice of words did not reflect who I am, but only what I was feeling."

"Also, my sincerest apologies to my teammates, coaches, the Browns organization and most of all, the fans and kids that motivate me to even pursue this dream."

"Again I am deeply sorry for my unacceptable behavior, and I wish the Browns the best of luck in the future. I love you!"