CLEVELAND — As the Cleveland Browns prepare to open their 2023 training camp, they'll be doing so with one less player. On Wednesday, the Browns announced that they have released second-year defensive tackle Perrion Winfrey.
Winfrey's release comes as a video accusing him of threatening a woman made the rounds on social media on Wednesday. In the Instagram story, the woman writes that Winfrey chased her and a friend out of The 9 hotel, pointed a gun and stole both of their phones. The video also includes a man's voice threatening to strike the woman and a glimpse of a man who could be Winfrey. The man is addressed as "Perrion."
Cleveland Police have since confirmed that Winfrey is a suspect in an alleged aggravated robbery that occurred on Tuesday night outside of The 9 hotel. According to a police report, the victim and her friend were in the lobby of the hotel when they saw Winfrey, who the victim said she called a vulgar name after he initially ignored them.
Winfrey is then alleged to have approached the women, attempting to take her phone as they moved outside. The woman also said that Winfrey "lunged at her striking her left side of her neck with his arm and pulling the phones out of her hand" before lifting his shirt to reveal a firearm that had been tucked into his waistband.
The woman also provided police with cell phone footage, which is captured audio of Winfrey allegedly threatening her. Police also noted that the woman had an abrasion on the left side of her neck.
Winfrey had left the scene before police arrived. Police spoke to him after he called a witness they were interviewing and arranged to have the woman's phone picked up by an officer.
In April, Winfrey was charged with assault against a family member in Harris County, Texas. The alleged victim, who Winfrey had been dating, was granted protection order, and the charge was dropped in June after he completed a pretrial diversion program.
Asked about Winfrey's arrest in April, Browns general manager Andrew Berry said: "It’s a pending legal matter, so I won’t comment on the specifics of that, other than to say that Perrion understands what our expectations are for all players, whether they’re on the field or in the building."
Selected out of Oklahoma in the fourth round (No. 108 overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft, Winfrey appeared in 13 games during his rookie season, tallying 22 tackles, one of which came for a loss and a half-sack. The Maywood, Illinois, native was held out of practice due to disciplinary reasons ahead of the Browns' Week 2 loss to the New York Jets, which he was made inactive for.
Despite his up-and-down rookie season, Winfrey flashed plenty of promise and was thought to be a potential key contributor in Cleveland's defensive line rotation in 2023.
Browns rookies are scheduled to report to training camp on Wednesday, with veterans scheduled to report on Friday.