The Cleveland Browns are using the summer as a place to see who will make the team in 2025 and help make this a better roster.
This offseason, they watched as several players left in free agency to sign elsewhere, and safety Juan Thornhill was one of them. In March, he signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Steelers after spending two seasons with the Browns.
As he looks to get used to playing with his new team, Thornhill was involved in a fight with his teammate Jonnu Smith.
During Thursday's practice, Smith beat Thornhill on a corner route during a 1 vs. 1 drill and threw the ball at the safety following the grab. That prompted Thornhill to get in Smith's face, and the two guys got into a pushing match.
TE Jonnu Smith beats S Juan Thornhill during 1v1s at #Steelers training camp! 🔥
— Steelers Update (@SteelersUpdate1) July 31, 2025
Smith throws the ball at Thornhill and a fight ensues. 👀 pic.twitter.com/VlRRloj2j3
Former Browns S Juan Thornhill Was Seen Fighting Jonnu Smith in Practice
Fights during training camp are not a surprise. Things get testy when you're battling against one another day in and day out in the summer. The heat mixed with the added aggression, and you'll see things like this happen.
Thornhill getting beaten on the route, on top of the ball getting thrown at him, got him riled up. Nonetheless, that's a battle he lost on the field and isn't something he wants to continue. Yet Browns fans wouldn't be upset if that's how his tenure in Pittsburgh went down.
Over 22 games in Cleveland, Thornhill had 103 total tackles with just four pass deflections, one TFL, and zero interceptions. He missed six games in each season, but even when he was on the field, he struggled. According to PFF, he had a 65.5 overall grade (72nd among 171 graded safeties) and a 64.5 coverage grade (54th among 171 graded safeties) in 2024.
There was also a point in the season when Thornhill was being called out by the fans for his lack of effort against the New Orleans Saints on a 71-yard catch-and-run for a score. He ended up taking accountability for his actions, but that didn't take away from the embarrassing clip.
The Browns didn't want to deal with a third year of having Thornhill back there in the secondary, and he's now the Steelers' problem.
Back in May, Thornhill posted on X, "Can’t wait !!! This s*** is Personal." That came shortly after the Browns signed former Steelers safety Damontae Kazee, which caused fans to speculate that he was throwing shots at the Browns.
It looks like he'll have the two games against the Browns circled on the schedule, but if he's playing like he did in the clip above, Cleveland will be pumped for the contests as well.