Report: Browns rookie could debut in Week 2 despite NFL investigation

Back in July, Cleveland Browns rookie running back Quinshon Judkins was arrested on a domestic violence and battery charge in the state of Florida. However, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the neophyte could make his Browns debut as soon as the team’s Week 2 bout against the Baltimore Ravens on Sept. 14.

Judkins is also slated to meet with the NFL soon regarding its investigation into the alleged incident.

It came to light last month that Judkins won’t face a formal misdemeanor battery charge in connection with the reported domestic incident, though. Prosecutors did not pursue charges against the youngster, per a decline memorandum.

A move that the Browns recently made regarding Judkins also hints that the team still intends on having him stick around in Cleveland for the foreseeable future. The Browns inked Judkins to a fully guaranteed four-year, $11.4 deal just three weeks after news surfaced that prosecutors declined to pursue a misdemeanor charge against him.

The Browns drafted Judkins with the No. 36 overall pick in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft after he ran for 1,060 yards and 14 touchdowns across 16 contests played with Ohio State University in the 2024 collegiate campaign. He accumulated quadruple digits in rushing yards in every one of his three seasons of college football and played for the University of Mississippi as a freshman and sophomore.

How Cleveland fared from a rushing standpoint a season ago suggests that Judkins could prove to be just what the doctor ordered for the Browns to become more effective on the offensive end. Cleveland averaged just 94.6 rushing yards per game in the 2024 campaign, and only three teams in the league averaged fewer per contest.

However, the Browns won’t have Judkins in the fold for their looming Week 1 contest against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. Sans Judkins on the field to rack up rushing yards, folks should expect Cleveland’s rushing offense to struggle a bit, like it did in the 2024 campaign. With any luck, though, Judkins will suit up in Cleveland’s game against the Ravens in Week 2.