HOUSTON — The Cleveland Browns are spending Christmas Eve on the road as they take on the Houston Texans Sunday afternoon, and they'll do so with their starting left guard back in the mix as Joel Bitonio has been cleared to play.
Bitonio entered Sunday's game listed as questionable with a back injury that saw him leave the field against the Chicago Bears last week. Bitonio missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday but was able to return on Friday.
Still, the Browns wanted to see how he felt after that practice and through the weekend before deciding on his game status. Before kickoff, Bitonio was cleared to play and is active against the Texans.
Here are the Brons inactives:
- S Juan Thornhill
- LB Anthony Walker Jr.
- CB Kahlef Hailassie
- LB Jordan Kunasyzk
- DE Ogbo Okoronkwo
- C Luke Wypler
- DE Isaiah McGuire
Kunasyzk, Okoronkwo, Thornhill and Walker were all ruled out on Friday with injuries. Kunasyzk and Thornhill are dealing with calf injuries. Okoronkwo is working through a pectoral injury that is still in question of ending his season. Walker had a knee scope on Thursday after being sidelined with a knee injury. The linebacker will be evaluated weekly to see if he can return to play.
Meanwhile, for the Texans, quarterback C.J. Stroud was ruled out on Friday, remaining in concussion protocol. With Stroud out, the Texans will turn to their backup—a familiar face in Cleveland—and start quarterback Case Keenum.
The Browns can no longer clinch a playoff spot this week after the necessary situations around the league did not come to fruition (the Bengals losing and the Bills winning eliminated all eight possible scenarios), but a win against the Texans on Sunday would create a win-and-in situation for the Browns Thursday night against the New York Jets.
