The Cleveland Browns removed a potentially significant lingering question mark for week ten by announcing that Peyton Hillis and Montario Hardesty are both OUT for Sunday's game versus the St. Louis Rams. Head coach Pat Shurmur made the announcement in his Monday morning press conference. Hillis has been dealing with a hamstring strain for several weeks while Hardesty suffered a torn calf muscle against the San Francisco 49ers. A Monday injury ruling is fairly rare, which indicates these are significant injuries for the short term.
Third string running back Chris Ogbonnaya will get the start on Sunday, with Thomas Clayton likely operating as his backup. The Browns might bring in a free agent back or two for a workout, but Ogbonnaya is likely the start. Ogbonnaya struggled against the Houston Texans, rushing 13 times for 28 yards as the Browns fell behind quickly and had to play catchup the rest of the game.
Ogbonnaya is not a fantastic option moving forward, but if you picked him up this past week, he could be a moderately decent flex option against the Rams. There are no byes this week so choose carefully if you elect to start Ogbonnaya. One option if you did claim him off waivers would be to try and swing a deal with a Peyton Hillis owner.
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