Cleveland Browns standout free safety Tashaun Gipson first emerged on the national radar last season, as the organization was high on him and sung his praises during the season after he proved to be an unsung hero at the back end of the Browns secondary. T.J. Ward and Joe Haden deserved to grab the headlines, but Gipson was ignored by the majority of NFL fans. Those who did watch him gave him plenty of credit for his solid coverage downfield, as well as his five picks and 12 passes defended.
Gipson is a more well-regarded player this season, and he and newcomer Donte Whitner have formed quite the safety pairing to help keep the Browns secondary top-notch. The Browns, however, are faced with potentially missing their FS for this week’s game against the Houston Texans, as he left last week’s big win over the rival Cincinnati Bengals with a concussion late in the game.
Up until this point, Gipson was not able to practice, but it looks like he has cleared that hurdle in the concussion protocol. According to the Akron Beacon Journal’s Nate Ulrich, Gipson was able to return to the practice field today, and that’s definitely great news for the Browns, who will be facing Ryan Mallett in his starting debut. DeAndre Hopkins and Andre Johnson form an excellent WR duo, so the Browns secondary will have to cover like they did in Week 10.
Gipson isn’t out of the woods yet, but it now looks like he’s significantly less questionable to play. We’ll know more about his status on Sunday, because I think he’ll just be listed questionable on the injury report, which wouldn’t tell us much about his chances of suiting up.