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Source: Browns to sign ex-Longhorns WR Isaiah Bond to $3M deal

The Cleveland Browns are signing former Texas wide receiver Isaiah Bond, days after a grand jury declined to indict him on a sexual assault charge.

The contract is a three-year, $3.018 million fully guaranteed deal, a source said.

Bond last Thursday posted a statement on Instagram indicating that he planned to sign with Cleveland, shortly after it was announced that the sexual assault case against him was no-billed and that he would face no further criminal charges. Bond flew to Cleveland on Saturday evening with plans to wrap up his deal with the team.

General manager Andrew Berry noted that the team did its due diligence before deciding to sign Bond.

"We've spent much of the last calendar year getting to know Isaiah as a player and professional and much of the last four months gaining a full understanding of his legal situation," Berry said. "On the legal side, we have done extensive research that includes but is not limited to hearing from both sides of the case and receiving the results of an independently administered polygraph test. ... With his legal matter resolved through a no bill by a grand jury, Isaiah is focused on learning from this experience while moving forward with his life and career."

Bond was arrested in Texas in April on an outstanding sexual assault warrant and was released from the Collin County jail after posting bail of $25,000. After he was released from jail, Bond went on social media and said the accusation against him was "patently false."

He subsequently sued the woman who made the accusation against him, with his lawyers saying the sexual encounter was consensual. The lawsuit, which included a defamation claim, was dismissed with prejudice last month by the U.S. District Court in North Texas.

Bond was a highly touted prospect entering this year's NFL draft but proceeded to go undrafted following his arrest.

In his lone season at Texas in 2024, Bond caught 34 passes for 540 yards and five touchdowns. He spent his first two seasons at Alabama, catching 65 passes for 888 yards and five touchdowns. Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees was Bond's OC during the 2023 season.

Bond, who ran a 4.39-second 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine, will bring speed to an inexperienced Browns wide receivers room. Jerry Jeudy was named to his first Pro Bowl last season, but Cedric Tillman and Jamari Thrash, the two wideouts listed alongside Jeudy as starters in Cleveland's most recent unofficial depth chart, have a combined 53 career catches.