Ex-Saints RB Signs With Browns Amid Judkins, Sanders Injury Concern

The world of NFL running backs is always changing quickly.

One RB who began his season with the New Orleans Saints is already onto his third team of the 2026 campaign.

That'd be Audric Estime, who signed with the Cleveland Browns earlier this week.

Estime had been on the Minnesota Vikings' practice squad, so the Browns had to sign him onto their active roster in order to nab him from there.

And given the current injury state Cleveland is in, the Browns might actually need to use Estime in Week 6 against the Baltimore Ravens .

It's ironic, because the Saints have already found themselves with plenty of RB injury troubles of their own.

Estime was originally a fifth-round pick of the Denver Broncos in the 2024 NFL Draft out of Notre Dame.

He only lasted one season in Denver before being waived, and the Philadelphia Eagles had him for the first two months of the 2025 season.

They cut him, though, and Estime joined the Saints for the tail end of 2025. He got into seven games for New Orleans and ran 46 times for 198 yards and a touchdown to go with 12 catches for 103 yards.

That was enough to keep Estime around through this preseason, but the Saints waived him due to injury in mid-September.

The Vikings signed Estime to their practice squad about a week later. And it was two weeks after that the Browns claimed him.

So Estime had NFL action with the Broncos in 2024 and the Saints in 2025. He played for New Orleans in the preseason this year but has yet to get into an NFL regular season game in 2026.

The Browns are in dire need at the running back position right now.

They have already placed Raheim "Rocket" Sanders on injured reserve — and no, he's not related to Shedeur, but he was their RB2 in the early stages of this season.

And their starting running back, Quinshon Judkins, didn't practice on Wednesday. His status for Week 6 is in doubt.

If Judkins is out, the Browns are left with just Jaleel McLaughlin of the players who were previously on their team.

They have brought in Estime to potentially pair with McLaughlin in what would be a backfield featuring two former Broncos.

The Browns do have one RB on their practice squad, too — Jaret Patterson, the former University of Buffalo star who would likely be elevated for gameday if Judkins is unable to play.

But Estime is set to be active either way, it seems, because the Browns probably wouldn't have signed him into an active roster spot off the Vikings' practice squad if they didn't plan on using him in some form. At worst, he's some much-needed insurance for a banged-up Cleveland roster.