UPDATE (3:58 PM): Schwartz is being waived/injured due to a concussion. He will still be on the team but can’t be designated as a to-return player
Our original story is below.
It’s not just the Pittsburgh Steelers who made mistakes in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft. While the team whiffed on OL Kendrick Green, the Cleveland Browns came up empty on WR Anthony Schwartz. Four picks after the Steelers took Green, the Browns took Schwartz, one of the fastest players in the draft. Fast forward to today and Schwartz was among the Browns most recent list of of 12 cuts.
Like Green, Schwartz has been the butt of every joke in Cleveland. He appeared in just 25 games for the team, making three starts, with minimal impact. He caught just 14 passes for 186 yards and one touchdown while rushing for another as a Brown. His impact in the return game was uneventful, averaging only 21.5 yards on 15 career kick returns. Drops and a linear speedster without much wiggle were his biggest problems.
He ended 2022 on injured reserve with a concussion and got lost in the Browns’ wide receiver shuffle. Cleveland traded for Elijah Moore and drafted Cedric Tillman this offseason while Austin Watkins Jr. has become a camp darling. Not even Jakeem Grant’s season-ending injury could open up a spot for Schwartz.
Schwartz will now look to catch on elsewhere. He’s likely to resurface somewhere in the NFL, though he’ll probably begin on someone’s practice squad. In college, Schwartz was a playmaker for Auburn with more rushing touchdowns (seven) than receiving (six). But we were down on him in our pre-draft profile, concluding:
“Schwartz has a great calling card in his speed. No question about that. But the rest of his game left a good bit to be desired. He’s not the vertical threat even like former teammate Darius Slayton, who was a much better prospect. Schwartz’s use in Pittsburgh would be similar to how they’ve used Ray-Ray McCloud and the jet/short game route tree would have a home in Matt Canada’s offense. But Schwartz isn’t a guy the Steelers need to draft. At best, he’s a Marquise Goodwin but I compare him more to an Aldrick Robinson as far as one-note deep threats go.”
An assessment that overall proved to be accurate. And it may have been Goodwin’s return as the nail in Schwartz’s coffin. Goodwin was activated by the Browns off NFI due to blood clots in his lungs. Though he’s much older (Schwartz is still only 22), Goodwin is a legitimate NFL speedster who might capture one of the team’s final roster spots.
In fact, that range of picks surrounding Green and Schwartz didn’t turn out as team’s hoped. RB Trey Sermon didn’t last long in San Francisco. OG Ben Cleveland hasn’t worked out in Baltimore. Ditto with Tennessee Titans LB Monty Rice. It’s a reminder of how hard it is to find consistent draft success.
All 32 NFL teams must trim their rosters down to 53 by Tuesday at 4 PM/EST. Like Cleveland, Pittsburgh has begun making their cuts ahead of time, already releasing nine players to bring their roster down to 81. They have 28 more cuts to go.
