Yes, you read the headline correctly.
The Cleveland Browns have waived rookie tight end Dae'Quan Wright and he is now expected to join LSU's roster, provided none of the other 31 NFL teams pick him up, Wright's agents told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Sunday.
The move has been in the works for some time. Wright is part of a group of athletes from the graduating class of 2022 who sued the NCAA in Louisiana, hoping to get a fifth year of eligibility that has been granted to all graduating classes moving forward, as part of the NCAA's new age-based, 5-for-5 eligibility model.
Judge Will Jorden not only granted the group's request, but also allowed them to enter the transfer portal. Wright signed with Virginia Tech out of high school, but transferred to Ole Miss ahead of the 2024 season and caught 66 passes and nine touchdowns for the Rebels over the past two seasons. He went undrafted in the spring, signed with the Philadelphia Eagles, and then camped with the Browns before being cut after the club's second preseason game. Wright evidently was not close to making the Browns' 53-man roster; he did not register a reception in either of the team's preseason games.
Regardless, Wright has a pre-arranged home in Baton Rouge and, if he's successful in joining his third college team in five years after wearing two NFL helmets, he's likely to have plenty of followers up through the NFL's cut down day at the end of the month.
His efforts to join LSU's roster will be met with resistance, though. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey circulated a memo last week, according to Yahoo, reminding his member schools against the league's rules adding intra-conference transfers, and he filed an affidavit in a separate case against LSU's attempt to add former St. John's point guard RJ Luis, who signed a contract with the NBA's Boston Celtics. Sankey and the SEC helped the NCAA get Charles Bediako off Alabama's basketball roster after he played professionally in multiple leagues. (It should be noted: while LSU may be the most flagrant, they are not alone. Texas welcomed offensive lineman Cole Hutson back after he had cups of coffee with the Browns and Dallas Cowboys over the summer.)
The SEC has also spoken openly about breaking away to its own separate entity if and when the Protect College Sports Act fails in Congress, and so handling Wright -- and others who follow him -- could be a litmus test for well the SEC polices its own, and argues its case against hometown judges. "We believe the order should allow players to transfer within the conference, but have reached out to the SEC to discuss," Wright's attorney Ryan Downton told CBS.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.