Cleveland, OH
Browns will start Dorian Thompson-Robinson at QB in Week 16 vs. Bengals
The Cleveland Browns will start Dorian Thompson-Robinson at quarterback in the team’s Week 16 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The move comes after quarterback Jameis Winston and the Browns offense struggled in the team’s 21-7 Week 15 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Winston threw three interceptions and was replaced by Thompson-Robinson late in the game.
Winston has started seven games for the Browns this season, posting a 2-5 record in those contests. He’s completed 61 percent of his passes for 2,121 yards, 13 touchdowns and 12 interceptions this year. Thompson-Robinson has appeared in four games this season and completed 15 of 34 passes for 100 yards and three interceptions.
The Browns informed Thompson-Robinson Tuesday ahead of standard quarterback meetings that they will make him the starter.
He said he wanted to keep conversations with his coaches and teammates private, but said he was excited for the opportunity.
“I’ve always been preparing like I was the starter, just trying to stay ready,” Thompson-Robinson said. “We’re looking to go down there and get a win.
“In this league, you always have to prepare as if you have a lot to learn. I’ve learned a tremendous amount from Jameis and I just need to be ready to give my best for this team.”
Later Tuesday, Thompson-Robinson hosted about 25 kids for dinner and even a few football tosses at the Cleveland Boys and Girls Club for an event sponsored by his DTR Foundation and the Greater Cleveland Foodbank.
This is the 11th time in the team’s post-1999 era that they’ve had to use at least three different starting quarterbacks. Winston was the ninth starter in coach Kevin Stefanski’s five years on the job.
The Browns went 1-2 in DTR’s three starts last year.
Why this move makes sense
It was time to make the move for this game (and the rest of the season), and the 3-11 Browns letting Thompson-Robinson finish last week’s game pretty much confirmed what was going to happen. Winston doesn’t have a contract for next year, so with the future looking bleak for the Browns but wide-open at the game’s most important position, letting Thompson-Robinson get extended game action and full practice preparation for those games makes sense. He’s unlikely to impress, but Thompson-Robinson’s rookie contract runs through 2026, so if he can show some level of competence and improvement, he’ll have a chance to stick on the roster as a backup. There’s a scenario in which he plays well and takes a big leap, but nothing we’ve seen in his two seasons indicates that’s likely to happen.
What this means for DTR
Thompson-Robinson made three starts as a rookie in 2023, and his appearance last week vs. the Chiefs was his second extended action this season. His first start came early in his rookie season when Deshaun Watson was a late injury scratch, and his first action this year came after Watson was injured in the first game that the Browns made Thompson-Robinson their primary backup and demoted Winston to the third emergency quarterback. That switch wasn’t made until the day before the game, so Thompson-Robinson played vs. the Bengals on really no practice reps. In this scenario, he gets to go through the entire practice week knowing he’ll be the starter and ideally would be the starter for the final three games. In 12 career appearances, Thompson-Robinson has one touchdown pass vs. seven interceptions. If that ratio doesn’t drastically improve, then he won’t get many more chances.
First start of season vs. Bengals
Two things are potentially working in Thompson-Robinson’s favor this weekend. The first is that the Bengals’ defense is bad; Cincinnati is 31st in points allowed (27.6 per game) and is giving up 32 points per game over its last five. The Bengals are 29th in opponent yards per game (366) and 27th in pass yards allowed per game (239.2). Fantasy football managers take note: Thompson-Robinson and Browns wide receiver Cedric Tillman were high school teammates at Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas. Tillman has missed the last three games while in concussion protocol, but Tillman participated in practice this week and could be fully cleared in time to play Sunday. The Browns return to the practice field Wednesday afternoon.
Required reading
(Photo: Frank Jansky / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Cleveland, OH
Bomb threats against Northeast Ohio school districts continue for 2nd day
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – For the second day, Northeast Ohio school districts are receiving bomb threats.
On Friday morning, two schools in the Elyria City School District, the high school and Ely Elementary, received bomb threats.
Both schools are evacuating students, and emergency responders are on the way, according to a social media post.
All other district schools are in a lockout status as a precaution.
The district asks that family members not come to the schools or call school offices at this time so emergency communication lines remain available.
Elyria Police said that the department is working with the district to ensure the safety and security of students and school personnel following the threats.
“We are aware that neighboring school districts experienced similar swatting-related incidents yesterday, and our investigative personnel are working diligently with our law enforcement partners to identify the source of these threats,” police said.
Five Northeast Ohio school districts received bomb threats on Thursday, including:
- Alliance City School District
- Amherst Exempted Village Schools
- Cleveland Metropolitan School District
- Lorain City School District
- Shaker Heights School District
Below are the details from each district and the protocols in place to protect students and staff.
ALLIANCE CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT
The Alliance Police Department confirmed there was an ’anonymous’ robo-voice style call that came into the high school saying there were ’20 pipe bombs’ outside of the school” before 12:30 p.m.
Officers rushed to the high school and Rockhill Elementary School campuses “due to an alarm in which we were not getting a response from the school,” according to APD.
APD shared that the schools evacuated the students temporarily as officers conducted a sweep of the area.
“Nothing was found, thankfully,” APD Lt. Christopher McCord stated. “The school staff, and especially the students, did a great job of staying calm and making everyone’s jobs easier, smoother, and safer.”
“We will be looking into the source of the threats to hold those responsible accountable, if possible,” McCord added.
AMHERST EXEMPTED VILLAGE SCHOOLS
The Amherst Exempted Village School confirmed at 10:25 a.m. that Marion L. Steele High School and Walter G. Nord Middle School received a bomb threat.
AEVS said all district facilities were placed on a level 1 lockdown before the two schools were evacuated to a safe location under the supervision of administration and staff, according to district protocol.
The Amherst police and fire departments teamed up with the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office to perform perimeter and building sweeps to determine if the threat was substantiated, said AEVS.
The perimeter sweeps of the two schools were complete by 11:34 a.m., and law enforcement then conducted the interior sweeps of the buildings, AEVS explained.
Amherst Junior High School and Powers Elementary School lifted their lockdowns at that time and resumed normal procedures, according to AEVS.
AEVS also confirmed at that time that all students and staff were accounted for and safe.
The Amherst Police Department completed its sweep of Steele High School and cleared the building of any threat by 11:51 a.m., AEVS updated.
Students were dismissed for the day at that time, according to AEVS.
AEVS instructed student drivers to leave the campus, and students unable to immediately leave were to stay at the school until they could be picked up by a parent, guardian, or approved emergency contact.
The bus routes were running at the scheduled normal dismissal time for students who need a ride home, AEVS added.
APD completed its sweep of Nord School and cleared the building of any threat by 12:32 p.m., AEVS updated.
Nord School students were safely escorted back into the building, according to AEVS, after evacuating to the New Beginning Church as a safe location.
AEVS instructed parents, guardians, and approved emergency contacts who wanted to pick up their student to report to the school’s front entrance, where staff and APD officers would help.
Classes, activities, and normal dismissal procedures resumed as scheduled for students who stayed at the school, AEVS shared, and bus dismissal also proceeded per usual.
“We appreciate the cooperation, patience, and support of our families and community throughout today’s situation,” AEVS stated.
According to AEVS Superintendent Mike Molnar, all evening activities at the school will continue as scheduled, and school will resume on Friday.
Molnar added that AEVS will have an increased police presence at schools on Thursday night and Friday.
CLEVELAND METROPOLITAN SCHOOL DISTRICT
The Cleveland Metropolitan School District confirmed two threats were received on Thursday morning. The threats were against East Tech High School and Buhrer Dual Language Academy.
According to CMSD, Cleveland police and CMSD’s Department of Safety & Security conducted an investigation and found the buildings to be safe.
From the information gathered during the searches, Cleveland police believe both calls were swatting incidents.
Classes at both schools were uninterrupted, and the school day progressed normally.
Cleveland Metropolitan School District’s Communications Officer Jon Benedict added that parents were informed about the incident.
LORAIN CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT
Lorain City School District confirmed the high school has been evacuated due to a bomb threat on Thursday afternoon.
This is the third Northeast Ohio school district to receive a bomb threat on May 7.
The district announced the evacuation of Lorain High School at 12:23 p.m., and dismissed students at 12:40 p.m.
Bus riders were escorted to the buses waiting to take them home, according to LCSD.
LCSD said many elementary and middle school students were at the high school for the dance showcase.
Those elementary and middle school students were brought back to their home schools, said LCSD.
All students and staff are safe and following established protocols, LCSD stated, and these measures are being taken out of an abundance of caution.
The district safety team and law enforcement partners continue to investigate this threat.
“Your students’ and our staff’s safety is our top priority,” LCSD stated.
A 19 News crew is on their way to the scene to learn more.
SHAKER HEIGHTS SCHOOL DISTRICT
Shaker Heights High School received its second threatening phone call this week on Thursday, the district confirmed.
Shaker Heights School District said it immediately teamed up with the Shaker Heights Police Department to investigate the threat and determined its credibility.
SHSD said it was aware of the other Northeast Ohio school districts that received similar threats on Thursday.
“Based on the SHPD’s assessment and established safety protocols, the decision was made to continue normal school operations rather than initiate a shelter-in-place,” SHSD stated.
Additional SHPD officers and a K-9 unit were sent to the school out of an abundance of caution to support the safety and security of the building as the investigation continues, SHSD added.
Orrville City Schools were also placed on a soft lockdown on Thursday.
However, this was not a bomb threat, nor any direct threat to the school.
The soft lockdown was a precautionary measure for an incident that happened not just off school property, but out of the town.
This is a developing story. Return to 19 News for updates.
Copyright 2026 WOIO. All rights reserved.
Cleveland, OH
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