Miami Dolphins add former Auburn wide receiver to practice squad
Former Auburn wide receiver Anthony Schwartz has signed with the Miami Dolphins as a member of their practice squad, the NFL team announced on Monday.
Schwartz had been out of the NFL since the Cleveland Browns waived him from injured reserve on Sept. 19.
When the Browns reduced their preseason roster to the regular-season limit of 53 players in August, they waived Schwartz. But because he had a hamstring problem, he carried an injury designation and reverted to Cleveland’s injured reserve when he went unclaimed on waivers.
Releasing Schwartz from IR gave him an opportunity to play in the 2023 season, since Cleveland could not bring him back to its active roster after he received that designation.
Miami released wide receiver Raleigh Webb to create a practice-squad spot for Schwartz, who played high school football less than 25 miles from the Dolphins’ Hard Rock Stadium.
In three seasons at Auburn, Schwartz had 117 receptions for 1,433 yards and six touchdowns and ran for 323 yards and seven touchdowns on 42 carries.
The Browns selected Schwartz in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft hoping his speed would stretch the field for their offense. Schwartz started his NFL career with three receptions for 69 yards in Cleveland’s 33-29 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sept. 12, 2021, but he never reached either of those stats again in 24 more games with the Browns.
As a rookie with Cleveland, Schwartz caught 10 passes for 135 yards and one touchdown, ran six times for 39 yards and returned 15 kickoffs for a 21.5-yard average. He was on the field for 295 offensive snaps and 52 special-teams plays in 14 games in 2021. He missed three games after sustaining a concussion on Nov. 14, 2021, during a 45-7 loss to the New England Patriots.
In 2022, Schwartz had played in 11 games and had four receptions for 51 yards and four rushing attempts for 57 yards and one touchdown when he sustained a concussion in a 27-14 victory over the Houston Texans on Dec. 4. Schwartz missed the final five games of the season on injured reserve. In his second NFL campaign, Schwartz was on the field for 107 offensive snaps and 88 special-teams plays.
Schwartz had 14 receptions for 186 yards and one touchdown, 10 rushing attempts for 96 yards and one touchdown and 15 kickoff returns for a 21.5-yard average with Cleveland.
Each NFL team has a practice squad of up to 16 players. For each game, two of those players can be elevated to active status, making them eligible to play.
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