Cleveland Browns sign a tight end who has never played college football

Cleveland Browns made an interesting move on Monday afternoon, signing a player to the team that had never played college football. Yes, you read that correctly. Browns announced that they signed 24-year old Marcus Santos-Silva to a contract and he will be a tight end.

Surely, nothing will really be guaranteed. The Browns have to be intrigued by the size and athleticism that Santos brings. He is 6-foot-7 and 260 pounds

Santos played three years of college basketball at VCU, before transferring to Texas Tech, where he played last season. Santos was All-Big 12 honorable mention this past season. The big man blocked 29 shots and grabbed 151 rebounds on the season.

Currently, David Njoku and Harrison Bryant are the top two options on the team. Their spots are solidified, but the Browns will need to add behind them. Stephen Carlson is rehabbing from an injury still, he may be a guy the Browns bring back.

Johnny Stanton is another player that will play the full-back position, and handle some of the blocking duties as well.

It is a creative move to bring Santos in. It is a low risk-high reward kind of deal. Browns bring in a college basketball player with a huge frame, to see if he can offer anything to the tight end position. If he doesn’t, the Browns will move on with nothing hurt.

The move may look a bit silly since Santos never played college football, but this isn’t the first time a team is intrigued by the possibility of a basketball player bringing something to the football field.

Brandon Little is a writer for Sports Illustrated’s Browns Digest website and you can follow him on Twitter here. You can follow Browns Digest on Twitter as well here.

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