Dae'Quan Wright Leaves NFL Camp for LSU as Damien Harris Rips the Move
Waived by Cleveland on Aug. 24, the undrafted tight end has an LSU deal in place — the first active player to jump from the NFL to the college portal.
Headed to LSU after clearing waivers — zero NFL fantasy value in 2026-27.
- Waived by Cleveland on Aug. 24, 2026
- First active player to enter the college portal
- LSU deal in place if he clears waivers
- 113 catches, 1,603 yards at Va Tech and Ole Miss
- 22 years old, went undrafted this cycle
Dae'Quan Wright just did something no active NFL player has ever done: he walked out of a training camp and into the college transfer portal. The undrafted tight end, waived by the Cleveland Browns on Aug. 24, already has an agreement in place to join LSU pending waivers — making him, by all accounts, the first ex-NFL player to head back to college football.
Wright's pro run was brief. He signed with the Eagles first, landed on the Browns' practice squad, took part in training camp and even dressed for a preseason game before an apparent injury shelved him. That was the whole NFL résumé before the exit. His college numbers are the meatier line: 113 receptions for 1,603 yards across Virginia Tech and Ole Miss.
The reaction has been loud, and not kind. Former NFL running back and two-time national champ Damien Harris called the move flat-out embarrassing, telling us he considers it elementary and bush league. Harris argued Wright is taking a roster spot from a player who actually wants to be there, and said the whole episode is a symptom of what college football has turned into — players holding all the control and using it however they please.
How Wright Pulled It Off
The 22-year-old isn't operating in a total vacuum. A new NCAA rule grants most Division I athletes five years of eligibility, but it doesn't kick in until next season and didn't cover Wright. So he and a group of other athletes sued in Louisiana and were granted a temporary restraining order clearing him to play one more college year. Browns coach Todd Monken sounded genuinely baffled, admitting he now understood why Lane Kiffin had reached out a week earlier — a call he says he never returned.
Harris didn't stop at the insult. He said that if he were running a front office, a move like this would color how he evaluated Wright and anyone following the same path — questioning their competitiveness, their love of the game and their willingness to grind for a roster spot. It's a harsh scouting note, but it reflects how some in NFL circles will file this away.
For fantasy purposes, this one's simple. Wright had no measurable role in Cleveland's offense, no defined path to snaps, and he's now leaving the league entirely for LSU. There's nothing to roster, nothing to stash, nothing to monitor on the NFL side. Drop him without a second thought and move on — his football future is a college story now, not a fantasy one.
