The Browns placed tenders on Pro Bowl safety Tashaun Gipson, linebacker Craig Robertson, defensive lineman Ishmaa'ily Kitchen and special teams ace Johnson Bademosi, general manager Ray Farmer announced Monday.
By placing tenders on these restricted free agents, the Browns earn the right to match any offer sheet signed by them with other teams on the open market. If a player has a first- or second-round tender placed upon him, the Browns would be rewarded the commensurate draft pick from the team in the event that team is able to sign away the player.
Gipson, who was an undrafted free agent out of Wyoming three years ago, was among the NFL's top safeties in 2014 and finished second overall in interceptions despite missing the final five games of the season with a knee injury. He became the first Browns undrafted defensive player to make the Pro Bowl since Mike Johnson (1991) after racking up six interceptions, 52 tackles, eight passes defensed and a defensive touchdown.
Robertson is also coming off his best NFL season, as he finished third on the Browns with 92 tackles and added two interceptions, a fumble recovery and a defensive touchdown. He played in all 16 games, starting 11, and was named the team's Walter Payton Man of the Year for the combination of his on-field success and off-field work with various charities throughout the community.
Kitchen, who played nose guard in the Browns' 3-4 defense this past season, has appeared in 40 games over the past three seasons. He started the first three games of his career in 2014, played in 13 and recorded a career-high 43 tackles.
Bademosi finished 2014 with the most special-teams tackles of anyone on the Browns (15) for the third consecutive season. With action in 46 games, Bademosi is second in the NFL with 44 special-teams tackles over the past three seasons.
