Cleveland, OH
Top Free Agent Shows Clear Interest in Joining Browns
The Cleveland Browns will be one of the many teams this offseason looking to add to their linebacker room.
Heading into NFL free agency next week, the Browns could lose linebackers Anthony Walker Jr., Sione Takitaki, Jacob Phillips, Matthew Adams, and Jordan Kunaszyk. And not to mention, Cleveland only has $6.7 million in cap space to work with this offseason.
Therefore, they’ll have to make some tough cuts and rework a couple of contracts to make the necessary additions to the linebacker room. However, if the Browns decide to go shopping on the free-agent market, there’s one linebacker with Ohio ties who wants to play for them.
Former Ohio State linebacker Jerome Baker liked a tweet on Twitter/X that said he would look good in the orange and brown. Baker was released on Wednesday by the Miami Dolphins after the two sides couldn’t reach an agreement.
Seems like Jerome Baker definitely would not be opposed to coming home #Browns pic.twitter.com/19YUYgBfll
— MoreForYouCleveland (@MoreForYou_CLE) March 6, 2024
The 27-year-old linebacker is a Cleveland, OH native and played his college ball at Ohio State. Baker only played in 13 games this past season due to injuries but still managed to produce 78 combined tackles, four quarterback hits, three pass deflections, two interceptions, and 1.5 sacks.
The 6-foot-2 Baker would be the perfect complement to Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, giving the Browns an athletic linebacker unit that can hold its own in pass coverage.
The Browns currently have the third-best odds to win the AFC North next season (+550 on FanDuel Sportsbook), but the potential addition of Baker would somewhat shorten those odds, along with improved play from Deshaun Watson.
More Browns news and analysis:
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change
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Cleveland, OH
Man shot on Cleveland’s West Side
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – A man was shot in Cleveland’s Cudell neighborhood Tuesday night.
Cleveland Police 1st District officers responded to the 10100 block of Madison Ave around 9:00 P.M.
A man approximately 45 years of age was found with a gunshot wound.
EMS took the victim to MetroHealth Hospital. This incident remains under investigation.
There is no information on any suspects or arrests.
Copyright 2026 WOIO. All rights reserved.
Cleveland, OH
Leaders in Washington and Cleveland take aim at affordable housing in Northeast Ohio
CLEVELAND — Ahead of her Third Annual Housing Expo this Saturday at Tri-C Corporate College East, Rep. Shontel Brown (D-OH) rolled out her Safe and Affordable Housing Agenda on Tuesday. It’s a series of four bills aimed at lowering home costs while strengthening lead paint and pipe abatement.
“We wanted to bring something forward that would improve the living conditions, to make things more affordable and more accessible for not only the constituents of Ohio’s 11th Congressional District but those who are experiencing the same challenge across the country,” Brown told News 5.
The Housing Supply Fund Act is legislation that encourages the building of more affordable housing by filling financing gaps that are holding back construction. The legislation would establish a competitive program within the Treasury’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund to address financing gaps that prevent otherwise viable housing projects from moving forward.
“We want to make sure we do not give up on affordable housing; we want to make sure that it is more accessible,” Brown said.
There is also the Affordable Housing Preservation and Protection Act, which is legislation to maintain and preserve existing HUD-assisted housing. This legislation establishes a new HUD preservation authority to provide targeted financing and intervention tools for distressed HUD-assisted multifamily properties at risk of deterioration, foreclosure, or loss of affordability.
The bill is designed to help preserve affordable housing, facilitate responsible ownership transitions, and protect existing federal housing investments serving seniors, working families, and vulnerable residents.
The other two bills introduced deal with the issue of lead abatement. The GET THE LEAD OUT Act of 2026 would create a new federal grant program to replace lead pipes, fixtures, and taps. The legislation would create a broad federal framework to address lead in drinking water and housing by funding removal of lead-based pipe and tap hazards, establishing training and certification requirements, directing federal standards and state programs, and integrating lead plumbing remediation into major housing programs. Brown’s legislation creates new authorities and financing mechanisms to drive national action on residential lead plumbing hazards.
The Removing Existing Pipes with Lead and Advancing Clean Environments (or REPLACE) Act improves existing lead paint and lead pipe removal programs within the federal government. This legislation would amend existing HUD and Safe Drinking Water Act authorities to strengthen lead-paint hazard remediation in housing, improve local implementation capacity, and better coordinate paint and pipe removal efforts.
“We know that this has been a longstanding issue in the City of Cleveland,” she said. “What we’re doing is trying to supplement and amplify the opportunities to be able to address these issues that have long-standing impacts in our community.”
Brown’s announcement comes on the heels of the Bibb administration’s announcement of the creation of the Housing Innovation District, a 1,500-acre swath of land covering St. Clair, Superior and Hough where efforts will begin this summer to repopulate streets that have lost more than half of their homes in recent decades with new housing starting on East 67th south of St. Clair, where ten homes will go up later this year.
A recent New York Times piece cited that among the barriers to building more housing are restrictive zoning and permitting, something the city addresses in this district.
“One of the big things that we’re doing is eliminating permit fees for single-family home construction, which is again a real sort of barrier to this sort of work,” said Tom McNair, Mayor Justin Bibb’s Chief of Integrated Development.
They also established what they call a “Pattern Book,” where they’ve pre-approved designs for certain types of homes in this district to speed up the process.
“When there’s a vacant lot that the city owns, it will be like this is the home you want, this is the lot you want to build on, here’s your permit,” he said.
Congresswoman Brown sees their efforts helping citizens towards the same goal.
“Our legislation would dovetail perfectly into what the mayor is putting forth as well,” she said. “People are doing all of the right things, they’re working hard, but they’re still having trouble getting ahead, and we want to be able to again address that gap as it relates to the opportunity to build wealth in our community, and this legislation will certainly help put people on a pathway to do that.”
Part of that pathway includes Brown’s Housing Expo for constituents of the 11th Congressional District. “It’s a one-stop shop for everything housing, so whether you are a renter or whether you are a first-time home buyer, whether you are looking to renovate, whether you are a senior that’s aging in place. We wanted to bring every aspect of the housing industry under one umbrella, and so we will do that.”
Constituents can register for the free event here.
Cleveland, OH
Fire crews battle Cleveland duplex blaze, ammunition heard popping inside
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – The Cleveland Division of Fire responded to a 2 1/2 story side-by-side duplex fire Monday afternoon.
According to Cleveland Fire, the call came in just after 5 p.m. at 2154 and 2156 W 98th St.
The fire started in a second floor bedroom that spread to the attic.
Due to the size of the house and the volume of the fire, an extra engine and ladder companies were called to assist.
Cleveland Fire said a total of eight adults and three children were displaced from the fire and the Red Cross was called to assist.
Firearms were inside the structure and firefighters said they could hear ammunition going off as they fought the fire.
The fire also extended to an old tree that caught fire.
Total estimated loss is $120,000, Cleveland Fire said.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation and no injuries were reported.
Copyright 2026 WOIO. All rights reserved.
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