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What Browns rookie Mason Graham is chasing this week against the Raiders
BEREA, Ohio — There’s one big milestone Browns No. 5 overall pick Mason Graham is still chasing.
The good news is he has a chance to reach it on Sunday as the Browns take on the Las Vegas Raiders, going against one of the worst offensive lines in the league.
“You’re always chasing, you don’t want to be chasing after the sack, but it’s always cool to have the stats to go with it, how you’re playing,” Graham said on Friday.
Graham is still chasing his first solo NFL sack.
His lone half sack came in Week 3 against the Packers, off a perfectly executed twist stunt — but he split the takedown of Packers QB Jordan Love with veteran teammate Maliek Collins.
Graham has shown bursts of disruptiveness.
Pro Football Focus has him with 21 total pressures this season, including five last week against the Baltimore Ravens and Lamar Jackson.
One of those pressures came on Garrett’s third sack in his four-sack monster game, in which Graham forced Jackson to step back into the pocket, giving Garrett enough time to recover even though he got behind the Ravens QB.
Those are the kinds of plays Graham is perfectly happy to keep making. He’s also most certainly had an impact on Garrett reaching 15.0 sacks already this season, leading the league and on pace to break the league single-season sack record at 22.5.
“I’m just worried about getting to the quarterback, whether that means getting the sack or not,” he said. “I just want to be a factor. And if it leads to a pick and I don’t get the sack, if he throws the ball last second, alright, cool, I just want to have some good tape that helps our team.”
But defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz has kept insisting there is still “meat on the bone” when it comes to Graham as a pass rusher.
A big reason is that while at Michigan, Graham still showed off impressive pass rush traits despite spending a lot of time eating up blocks. In an attack-first defense, it’s been an adjustment.
But the Browns have been happy with what they’ve seen so far.
“I don’t know that anybody is only looking at sacks,” head coach Kevin Stefanski said last week when asked about Graham. “If they are, they’re not looking at the whole picture when it comes to defensive line play. I know around the league, the importance is placed on pressures and is placed on their ability to affect the quarterback.
“And obviously when they result in sacks, that’s ideal. But the ability to affect the quarterback is the most important thing that defensive linemen can do.”
Against the Raiders, Graham should have a chance at his first solo sack, especially as he’s been ramping up the pressure in recent weeks with eight pressures and two hits over his last two games.
Raiders quarterback Geno Smith has been sacked 31 times this season (the fourth-worst mark in the league) for 214 yards.
Graham should be able to win some one-on-one matchups, especially if the Raiders devote more to Garrett.
But for now, the rookie is worried about playing his role in one of the league’s best units.
“I come up here every week and say I just want to progress every week,” he said. “So whatever that looks like. But I feel like we all help each other. We’re all complementary to each other. We all do things well that everyone’s different. Maliek does something different than I do, Mike (Hall Jr.), Myles, Zay (Isaiah McGuire), Alex (Wright), we’re all different players, but when we find a way to work together, we all complement each other.”
If he keeps that attitude, that sack won’t be far off.
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CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – A woman was found dead in the backyard of a home on the city’s West side Friday morning.
Officers responded to the 3400 block of Bosworth Rd. around 9 a.m. for a welfare check.
This is in the city’s West Boulevard neighborhood.
When officers arrived at the home, they found the victim.
The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Officer will now determine the victim’s name and cause of death.
A child connected to the woman has been located and confirmed safe, said Cleveland police.
Police added the circumstances regarding the death remain under investigation.
Copyright 2026 WOIO. All rights reserved.
This forecast is outdated and inaccurate. Get the latest forecast here.
CLEVELAND (WJW) — (WJW) — The National Weather Service has extended its EXTREME HEAT WARNING for all of Northeast Ohio.
It will remain in effect until 8 p.m. on Friday, July 3, in Ashland, Ashtabula, Crawford, Cuyahoga, Erie, Geauga, Holmes, Huron, Lake, Lorain, Mahoning Medina, Ottawa, Portage, Richland, Sandusky, Stark, Summit, Trumbull and Wayne counties; and until 10 p.m. Friday, July 3, in Carroll, Coshocton and Tuscarawas counties.
The heat waves continues! An EXTREME HEAT WARNING will remain in effect through 8 p.m. Friday. Heat indices could top 105 degrees during the hottest time of day on Friday.
Once again, there will not be much relief from the heat and humidity overnight. Tonight lows will be in the mid to upper 70s again. Feeling warmer with the higher humidity. Mostly clear skies.
Friday will be the last sweltering summer day before the heat starts to back off for the Fourth of July holiday weekend. There is the chance of rain and storms Friday evening, around 7pm that could go through the late evening. This may impact some 4th of July celebrations on Friday. Any storm that pops up we’ll have to watch for the potential of gusty winds, heavy downpours and large hail.
This is what the radar could look like by the time some Fireworks celebrations are expected Friday evening. We have a level 2 out of 5 chance of any storm turning severe, meaning that 1 or 2 have the chance.
The upper-level ridge, or heat dome, will start to breakdown on Friday. This means two things. The first is it will go from being very hot and humid to being very warm and humid. The second thing is the chance of rain and threat of storms will return.
The Fourth of July holiday weekend will be far from a washout! There will be more dry time than time with downpours and storms. However, clusters of downpours and storms will move through Northeast Ohio at times. This means some Fourth of July events, backyard BBQs, pool parties, and firework shows could be impacted by rain and storms.
With all the heat and humidity around, any downpours or storms that develop could be strong and produce gusty winds, small hail, torrential rain, and lightning. Here’s the latest 8 Day Forecast:
Keep up with FOX 8 News for the latest weather updates.
Abdullah Mason and Albert Bell previewed their championship bout and came face to face at the press conference. The two fighters square off this Saturday, July 4, at Cleveland State University’s Wolstein Center.
- Cleveland-based 22-year-old southpaw Mason (20-0, 17 KOs) of Bedford, Ohio, defends his WBO lightweight title after claiming the vacant belt last November by decision against Sam Noakes.
- Toledo’s 33-year-old Bell (28-0, 9 KOs), who makes his first bid to become a champion, took the fight on short notice, replacing Joe Cordina of Wales.
See below what Mason and Bell had to say at the press conference on Thursday, following the open workout.
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Mason: I’m prepared to come out on top
“I’m excited. I’m super excited,” Mason said. “This is something me and my brothers have been looking forward to doing since we were amateurs. We fought on the same card a few times as amateurs, and all of us did it together on the last show my father threw here in Cleveland. It was huge.”
“At that time, we were like, ‘Yo, when we do this on a professional level, it’s going to be big for Cleveland.’ And now, it’s big for not only Cleveland, but it’s on TNT, so this is a national stage, a world stage with DAZN. I’m just excited to be able to put this show on with two of my brothers on the card.”
“I feel like it [fight vs Sam Noakes] was definitely a much-needed experience. That’s not the type of fight you have all the time in your career. It was something I felt like I had to do that night. Every fight is different, and it definitely gave me some insight into how I’ll approach the rest of my career. So, it was a much-needed experience and a great fight.”
“It [opponent change] was definitely unexpected. Albert Bell – that’s our guy from Toledo. But it’s boxing. You’ve got to be prepared for anything, and I’m prepared to come out on top. Everything happens for a reason.”
“One thing I do want to say is, I’m the youngest world champion in boxing for a reason, and I’m prepared to show that when I step into the ring.”
“Boxing is offense, defense and IQ, and you’ve got to put it together and tailor it to the person you’re stepping in the ring with. So, with the opponent switch, I just have to tailor it to the person across the ring from me, and that’s Albert Bell.”
Bell: We’re here now, and that’s all that matters
“I mean, it caught me by surprise,” Bell said on stepping in to face Mason on short notice. “It was an ideal opponent for me. I wasn’t really thinking about fighting Abdullah, especially not this soon. But everything made sense. I talked to my pops about it, and it made sense, so I stepped in to save the card, get my world title opportunity and put on a show for all of Ohio.”
“I mean, I get turned down by a lot of guys. I’m not saying that in a cocky way or trying to act like I’m the boogeyman or anything like that, but a lot of guys say no when my name comes across their table. I would’ve had the name I was supposed to have by now if it weren’t for that, but what’s delayed is not denied. We’re here now, and that’s all that matters.”
“I just need to be the best version of myself. I know he’s coming to be the best version of himself. He’s prepared, I’m prepared. We’re ready. We’re two top fighters, and we’re professionals. We’re both Ohioans. We’ve got history with each other, and it’s gonna be a show for sure.”
Mason vs Bell undercard
In the co-feature, Bruce Carrington (17-0, 10 KOs) of Brooklyn makes the first defense of his WBC featherweight title against Rene Palacios (19-0-1, 10 KOs) of Mexico.
On the undercard, Cleveland’s Delante “Tiger” Johnson (17-0, 8 KOs) takes on Canada-based Mexican Christopher Guerrero (16-0, 9 KOs) at welterweight.
Plus, Deric Davis (11-0, 10 KOs) of Fort Washington, Maryland, and Carlos Ramos (18-4-1, 10 KOs) of Spain by way of Ecuador, square off at lightweight.
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