The Cleveland Browns will be without starting defensive end Alex Wright for the entire 2026 season after he sustained a ruptured Achilles tendon during a joint practice with the Buffalo Bills. The injury occurred Thursday when Wright landed awkwardly during a one-on-one pass-rush drill against Bills offensive tackle Spencer Brown.
Wright, 26, was a third-round pick by the Browns in the 2022 NFL Draft. He has appeared in 51 regular-season games, making 15 starts, and has recorded 98 tackles and 11.5 sacks. Last season, he had 5.5 sacks and 37 tackles in 14 games. In November 2025, the Browns signed Wright to a three-year, $33 million contract extension.
To address the loss, the Browns signed veteran defensive end Derek Barnett to a one-year contract potentially worth up to $5.5 million. Barnett, 30, was the 14th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft. He spent his first six seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he was part of the Super Bowl LII championship team, before joining the Houston Texans for the past three seasons. Barnett has recorded five sacks in each of his last two seasons and has 34 sacks in his career.
With Wright sidelined, Isaiah McGuire, a fourth-round pick in 2023, is expected to be in line to start opposite Jared Verse, whom the Browns acquired in the offseason. McGuire has 5.5 career sacks over three seasons with Cleveland and is entering the final year of his rookie contract.