The Cleveland Browns had an unexpected injury situation arise on Friday. Starting tight end Austin Hooper has been ruled out of Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals after undergoing an emergency appendectomy.
Hooper has been active in practices and without any injury designation before the bout of appendicitis that required immediate surgery.
“He’s in good spirits,” head coach Kevin Stefanski told reporters on Friday. “Obviously we’ll miss him but we’ll hold down the fort until he gets back.”
Hooper led the Browns in targets over the last two games. He has 22 receptions in the first six games, five of those in Week 6. He will be replaced by the combination of David Njoku, Harrison Bryant and Stephen Carlson.
