Dae’Quan Wright is moving toward a football path that barely seemed possible a few years ago.
The Cleveland Browns are waiving the rookie tight end, and ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Wright has an agreement to play for LSU in 2026 if he clears NFL waivers. That possibility immediately triggered disbelief across the football world.
NFL World Stunned by Dae’Quan Wright’s LSU Path
PFN’s Matt Cannata offered perhaps the simplest reaction to the situation.
“This is insane,” Cannata wrote in an X reply.
This is insane.
— Matt Cannata (@CannataPFN) August 23, 2026
PFN college football analyst Oliver Hodgkinson was even more direct. “I’ve always been a major advocate for student athletes, but this is ridiculous,” he wrote in his post.
Ari Meirov described the development as a broader indictment of where the sport currently stands. “The current state of college sports is embarrassing,” he wrote in another post.
The current state of college sports is embarrassing. https://t.co/LfzhGhRtOF
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) August 23, 2026
Another reaction from Brad took aim at the NCAA itself. “The current state of college football is embarrassing,” he wrote in his reply, adding that the people running the organization “should be fired.”
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Warren Sharp pushed the logic to its extreme. “This is insane,” he wrote in his post before jokingly asking whether former UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen could return to college for an NIL deal.
this is insane
also can Josh Rosen go back to college & get a huge NIL bag he left early where do we draw the line https://t.co/d9oKY8RVyK
— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) August 23, 2026
Even Browns coach Todd Monken sounded stunned by the broader situation earlier in the week, asking reporters, “Man, isn’t this (expletive) crazy?” after Wright entered the transfer portal while still on Cleveland’s roster.
The common theme was obvious. A player moving from college to the NFL is normal. A player participating in an NFL training camp and then potentially returning to the SEC is anything but.
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Court Ruling Opens Door for Wright to Join LSU
Wright’s unusual route stems from a Louisiana court ruling that temporarily opened another year of eligibility for a group of players challenging NCAA rules. He became the first active NFL player to enter the NCAA transfer portal while on a roster.
The Browns claimed Wright off waivers from the Philadelphia Eagles on Aug. 11. Cleveland is now reportedly waiving him, and if no NFL team claims him, his agreement with LSU can move forward.
There is legitimate football value behind LSU’s interest. Wright caught 39 passes for 635 yards and five touchdowns for Ole Miss in 2025. PFN gave him an 80.6 TE Impact grade, which ranked 20th nationally at the position.
That production helped Wright earn second-team All-SEC honors before he went undrafted in April. He later signed with Philadelphia and then landed in Cleveland.
Now, instead of fighting for an NFL roster spot, Wright could be headed back to the SEC with Lane Kiffin as his head coach at LSU.
For everyone reacting on Sunday, the question was not whether Wright can help a college team. It was how college football reached a point where an NFL training camp can apparently become part of the transfer portal process.
