Mike Vrabel served as a coaching and personnel consultant last season for Sunday’s visitors. Ashton Grant served as an offensive assistant and quarterbacks coach, too.
Other familiar faces remain on the staff there. But additional connections can be found between the active rosters, practice squads and reserve lists of the Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots. Eight currently in the fold have been members of both clubs during their NFL careers.
Here’s a glance through that list of players as the 1 p.m. ET kickoff at Gillette Stadium nears.
Bailey Zappe, quarterback — The Browns signed Zappe to practice squad at its formation in August. It marked a return to the AFC North for the 26-year-old quarterback. He had previously been signed to the 53-man roster last fall and went on to start the season finale. In between arrived two separate stints with the Kansas City Chiefs. The former record-setter by way of Houston Baptist and Western Kentucky entered the NFL in Foxborough in the fourth round of the 2022 draft. Zappe appeared in 14 games during his stay with the organization that called him at pick No. 137 overall. He completed 63.2 percent of his passes for 2,053 yards, 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions before departing at the end of the 2024 preseason.
DeAndre Carter, wide receiver — Carter was placed on injured reserve due to a knee injury as September closed. The 32-year-old stands 111 games into his NFL run. It began as an undrafted free agent out of Sacramento State in 2015. Originally setting out with the Oakland Raiders and Baltimore Ravens, Carter landed at Gillette Stadium in December of his rookie campaign. He was retained on a futures contract after logging time on the practice squad and caught a touchdown during the 2016 preseason. The veteran has toured the league since then. Scoring seven touchdowns, his career includes 117 receptions for 1,331 yards, 16 rushes for 99 yards, 155 punt returns for 1,508 yards and 144 kickoff returns for 3,399 yards.
Thayer Munford Jr., offensive tackle — The Browns retained Munford on the practice squad last week after he cleared waivers. The veteran offensive tackle had been signed to the 53-man roster by way of the Patriots’ practice squad in late September. He resided among the inactives for three consecutive games from there. Selected in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL draft out of Ohio State, Munford spent his initial three campaigns in the AFC West. The former No. 238 overall pick appeared in 46 games, including 18 starts, as a member of the Las Vegas Raiders and saw 1,088 offensive snaps between the bookend spots and eligible tight end.
Tre Avery, cornerback — Now on the 53-man roster, Avery served as a three-time standard elevation upon joining Cleveland’s practice squad in September. The 28-year-old cornerback was claimed off waivers by New England amid training camp. He saw 41 snaps between defense and special teams in the preseason before being let go ahead of the summer finale. Avery entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Tennessee Titans in 2022 and has also made stops with the San Francisco 49ers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Rutgers product has appeared in 42 career games, starting a handful, while totaling 72 tackles, 11 passes defensed and one fumble recovery.
Corey Bojorquez, punter — As an undrafted signing in 2018, Bojorquez went without a punt during his lone preseason as a Patriot before being claimed off waivers by an AFC East rival. But the specialist by way of Cerritos College and New Mexico has since punted 493 times for 23,271 yards and an average of 47.2 yards per. Following stints with the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Rams and Green Bay Packers, Bojorquez has called Cleveland home since 2022. The 29-year-old led the league in total punts and punting yards last campaign. A career long of 84 was in the cards.
Joshua Dobbs, quarterback — Naturally, Dobbs has been a recurring guest among the weekly roster ties. Since entering the NFL in the fourth round of the 2017 draft at No. 135 overall, he has appeared in 25 games and made 15 starts. The former Tennessee Volunteers quarterback has spent time with nine different organizations. He was in the Cleveland quarterback room in 2022 and then again in 2023 after tours elsewhere. A trade ended his second go-around. The Patriots signed the 30-year-old backup to a two-year contract in March. Dobbs has gone 345-of-551 passing for 3,293 yards with 17 touchdowns and 15 interceptions in his career. He’s added eight touchdowns as a rusher.
Austin Hooper, tight end — One-year deals have kept Hooper in Foxborough in back-to-back offseasons. The veteran tight end’s Patriots stay spans 24 games, 12 starts, 55 receptions, 592 yards and four touchdowns. Entering the NFL in the third round of the 2016 draft class, Hooper twice became a Pro Bowler with the Atlanta Falcons. The Stanford product left the club that selected him No. 81 overall as a free agent in 2020. He went on to start all 29 of his appearances while with Cleveland through 2021, catching 84 passes for 780 yards and seven scores. Released by the Browns halfway through a four-year pact, time as a Titan and a Raider followed for the 30-year-old.
Sebastian Gutierrez, offensive tackle — The Patriots added Gutierrez to the practice squad on the final day of September. He had previously spent a week at Gillette Stadium in that capacity during his rookie season. The 27-year-old offensive tackle went undrafted out of Minot State in 2022. His journey has brought stops with seven different organizations dating back to then. And several return stops. Gutierrez was on the Browns’ practice squad in the fall of 2024. He was claimed off waivers by Cleveland in August, as well, before being part of the 53-man roster deadline. His NFL career includes two appearances as a standard elevation.
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