When Cleveland obtained Greenville High School alumnus Za’Darius Smith in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings in March, the opportunities for Alex Wright to play on the opposite end of the Browns defensive line from Myles Garrett seemed destined to go down.

Having to undergo knee surgery in training camp didn’t brighten Wright’s prospects.

Entering Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears, Wright had played 200 defensive snaps in 12 games after the former Elba High School and UAB standout had played 542 as a rookie last season.

But against the Bears, Wright equaled his season high of four tackles, and they included a strip-sack and a third-down stop in the fourth quarter as Cleveland rallied for a 20-17 victory.

Wright’s second sack of the season came on a third-down snap at the Cleveland 44-yard line before either team had scored. Although the Bears recovered quarterback Justin Fields’ fumble, they had to punt.

In the fourth quarter, Wright dropped Chicago running back Tyler Scott for a 3-yard loss on a third-and-1 snap with Cleveland trailing 17-10.

The Browns’ rally boosted Cleveland’s record to 9-5. The Browns are on top of the AFC wild-card standings with three games to play, and only two teams in the conference have a better record than Cleveland – AFC North rival Baltimore at 11-3 and Miami at 10-4.

Wright was among the 25 players from Alabama high schools and colleges (excluding Alabama and Auburn) who got on the field on the 15th Sunday of the NFL’s 104th season.

Seven other former state players were involved in the Chicago-Cleveland game:

· Bears fullback Khari Blasingame (Buckhorn) did not record any stats.

· Browns linebacker Mohamoud Diabate (Auburn High) recovered the football at the Chicago 20-yard line with 2:31 left in the third quarter when the Bears’ Trent Taylor mishandled a punt. But Cleveland lost possession with an interception on the next snap.

· Bears wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. (Saraland) gained 23 yards on two rushing attempts.

· Bears cornerback Christian Matthew (Samford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Darnell Mooney (Gadsden City) started at wide receiver for the Bears. Mooney had two receptions for 14 yards.

· Za’Darius Smith (Greenville) started at defensive end for the Browns. Smith made one tackle and registered two quarterback hits.

· Browns wide receiver Austin Watkins (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

In the other Sunday games:

Carolina Panthers 9, Atlanta Falcons 7

· Falcons defensive lineman Travis Bell (Jeff Davis) made one tackle in his second NFL game.

· Panthers running back Spencer Brown (Mortimer Jordan, UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Panthers linebacker Tae Davis (Oxford) made one tackle on special teams. Davis played the first eight games this season with Atlanta.

· Panthers wide Jordan Matthews (Madison Academy) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 34, Green Bay Packers 20

· Packers wide receiver Grant DuBose (Park Crossing) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Packers cornerback Zyon Gilbert (Jeff Davis) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Buccaneers cornerback Keenan Isaac (Midfield, Alabama State) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Buccaneers wide receiver Cephus Johnson III (Davidson, South Alabama) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Buccaneers guard Logan Stenberg (James Clemens) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Packers offensive tackle Kadeem Telfort (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

Miami Dolphins 30, New York Jets 0

· Jets cornerback Tae Hayes (Decatur) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Dolphins wide receiver Tyreek Hill (West Alabama) was designated a game-day inactive. An ankle injury kept Hill out of the lineup.

· Jets defensive end Bryce Huff (St. Paul’s Episcopal) made two tackles and recorded one sack. Huff has eight sacks in 2023, surpassing his total of 7.5 during the previous three seasons.

· Quincy Williams (Wenonah) started at linebacker for the Jets. Williams made six tackles and broke up one pass.

New Orleans Saints 24, New York Giants 6

· Cor’Dale Flott (Saraland) started at nickelback for the Giants. Flott made three tackles.

· Giants defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches (Central-Phenix City) made four tackles.

· Saints linebacker Monty Rice (James Clemens) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Saints quarterback Jameis Winston (Hueytown) dressed for the game but did not play.

Houston Texans 19, Tennessee Titans 16

· Titans defensive tackle Shakel Brown (Troy) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Texans wide receiver Nico Collins (Clay-Chalkville) was designated as a game-day inactive. A calf injury kept Collins out of the lineup.

· Texans wide receiver Tank Dell (Alabama A&M) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Titans cornerback Eric Garror (McGill-Toolen) made three tackles and broke up one pass.

· Texans guard Tytus Howard (Monroe County, Alabama State) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Titans offensive lineman Chris Hubbard (UAB) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Titans offensive lineman Lachavious Simmons (Selma) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Jimmie Ward (Davidson) started at safety for the Texans. Ward made two tackles.

Kansas City Chiefs 27, New England Patriots 17

· Patriots center Jake Andrews (Stanhope Elmore, Troy) did not record any stats.

· Chiefs defensive tackle Neil Farrell Jr. (Murphy) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Patriots cornerback Marcus Jones (Enterprise, Troy) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Chiefs quarterback Chris Oladokun (Samford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Chiefs running back La’Mical Perine (Theodore) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Chiefs tight end Gerrit Prince (UAB) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Chiefs wide receiver Justyn Ross (Central-Phenix City) has not been restored to the active roster after being on the Commissioner Exempt List.

· Chiefs wide receiver Kadarius Toney (Blount) had two receptions for 5 yards.

· Chiefs wide receiver Montrell Washington (Samford) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

San Francisco 49ers 45, Arizona Cardinals 29

· Forty-Niners cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. (South Alabama) made one tackle.

· Starling Thomas V (Ramsay, UAB) started at cornerback for the Cardinals. Thomas made a career-high five tackles and broke up one pass.

Los Angeles Rams 28, Washington Commanders 20

· Commanders safety Jeremy Reaves (South Alabama) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.

· Commanders offensive tackle Trent Scott (Lee-Huntsville) did not record any stats.

Buffalo Bills 31, Dallas Cowboys 10

· Bills cornerback Siran Neal (Eufaula, Jacksonville State) made one tackle.

· Cowboys wide receiver Jalen Tolbert (McGill-Toolen, South Alabama) did not record any stats.

· Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams (Lee-Montgomery) registered two quarterback hits and made one special-teams tackle.

Baltimore Ravens 23, Jacksonville Jaguars 7

· Josh Allen (Abbeville) started at outside linebacker for the Jaguars. Allen made four tackles and registered two quarterback hits.

· Jaguars offensive lineman Chandler Brewer (Florence) was designated as a game-day inactive.

· Jaguars defensive end DJ Coleman (Jacksonville State) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Ravens quarterback Malik Cunningham (Park Crossing) was designated as a game-day inactive. Baltimore signed Cunningham off the New England Patriots’ practice squad on Monday.

· Ravens guard Tyrell Doss (Aliceville) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

· Ravens outside linebacker Jeremiah Moon (Hoover) did not record any stats. Baltimore elevated Moon off its practice squad to make him eligible to play.

· Michael Pierce (Daphne, Samford) started at nose tackle for the Ravens. Pierce made two tackles.

· Darious Williams (UAB) started at cornerback for the Jaguars. Williams made four tackles.

· Jaguars center Darryl Williams (Bessemer City) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.

Week 15 started on Thursday night, when the Las Vegas Raiders defeated the Los Angeles Chargers 63-21, and continued on Saturday, when the Cincinnati Bengals defeated the Minnesota Vikings 27-24 in overtime, the Indianapolis Colts defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 30-13 and the Detroit Lions defeated the Denver Broncos 42-17.

Week 15 concludes on Monday, when the Philadelphia Eagles and Seattle Seahawks square off at 7:15 p.m. CDT at Lumen Field in Seattle. ABC and ESPN will televise the game.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AmarkG1.