CLEVELAND, Ohio — Tight end David Njoku is one of a handful of Browns who have fallen out of favor with coach Freddie Kitchens and will likely be gone if he stays.

“That’s a good question,’’ Njoku told cleveland.com when asked if there’s a place for him here if Kitchens remains. “I don’t want to answer that yet. I’m not sure, so no comment.’’

Would he want to be back?

“I’m really doing everything I’m doing now for my teammates at this point,’’ he said. “Obviously it’s been a rollercoaster and at this point in my life with where I’m at, I’m just doing everything for the guys that I play with."

The No. 29 overall pick in 2017 by former Browns head of football operations Sashi Brown, Njoku was a healthy scratch the past two games and could be sidelined again in Sunday’s season finale in Cincinnati. If he gets on the field, it will likely be because fellow tight ends Ricky Seals-Jones and Pharaoh Brown are sick with the same flu-like symptoms that have hit Odell Beckham Jr. and are listed as questionable.

Seals-Jones missed Wednesday and Thursday and was limited Friday. Brown and Beckham both fell ill Friday and sat out practice. But if Njoku can’t get on the field a third straight week, he could follow many of his recent fellow first-round picks out the door.

“We’re going to play the people I think gives us the best chance to win each week,’’ Kitchens said. “Depending on what that is, we’ll see how it goes Sunday.”

Njoku, who broke his wrist in Week 2 against the Jets, never envisioned standing on the sidelines in street clothes when he had surgery to repair the wrist in October.

“I didn’t, which is why I pushed coming back so hard,’’ he said Friday. “I didn’t come back from a wrist injury this fast to sit on the sideline. It hurts my heart. I’ve got to say, this is not what I saw coming, but at the end of the day, it is what it is. I’ve got to keep moving from there.’’

Njoku originally planned to let the wrist heal on its own, but opted for surgery to get back on the field. He was eligible to return after eight games on injured reserve, on Nov. 24 against the Dolphins, but Kitchens made him inactive. Same thing for the following week in Pittsburgh, an almost must-win game for the Browns if they hoped to make the playoffs.

His replacement, Demetrius Harris, dropped a ball in the end zone that game, and hurt his shoulder in the process, which got Njoku on the field the following week against the Bengals. But when he dropped a pass on the Browns’ opening drive and it was picked off, he drew the ire of Kitchens. The coach yelled at him on the sidelines, and Njoku snapped back. He caught one pass that game. Kitchens benched him the next two weeks, against the Cardinals and Ravens.

“Obviously I want to be out there giving it my all with my teammates, but under whatever condition, I’m a healthy scratch for the second week in a row," he said. "Here we are last game, and I’m still unsure whether I’m allowed to play or not. It’s tough, but it’s not up to me.’’

Njoku admitted he had to knock the rust off, but feels he did that weeks ago.

“It took a little bit, but not this long,’’ he said. “Obviously I’m practicing every week, day in and day out, just to sit out, so it doesn’t make sense to me.’’

It doesn’t help Njoku that he was drafted by Brown. Browns GM John Dorsey has ushered most of Brown’s draft picks and acquisitions out the door, and Njoku could be next. Kitchens doesn’t seem to like his route-running or how he’s looked in practice.

The Browns must decide whether to pick up Njoku’s fifth-year option for first-round picks. At this point, it seems unlikely. Might a new head coach see him with fresh eyes?

“I can’t answer the ‘coulda woulda,’" Njoku said. “We’ll just answer the day-by-day and see how it goes."

Njoku, who caught 56 passes for 639 yards and four TDs in 2018, got off to a decent start in the opener against the Titans, catching four passes for 37 yards and a touchdown. But he broke the wrist when he was upended by Jets cornerback Nate Hairston. Njoku also suffered a concussion, which he called a “cheap shot’’ and said he was “lucky to be alive’’ considering the way he fell on his head.

Little did he know it would effectively end his season. In three games, he has five catches for 41 yards and a TD.

Yet he hasn’t lost faith in himself.

“Confidence comes from within,’’ he said. “You can’t let someone’s choices on your life change your confidence in any way, shape or form. So no matter what happens, I know who I am, I know what I did, I know what I produce and that’s all that matters in my head.’’

Njoku was one of Brown’s three first-round picks in 2017, and none of them is currently contributing to the Browns. No. 1 pick Myles Garrett is on indefinite suspension for striking Mason Rudolph over the head with the QB’s helmet, and No. 25 pick Jabrill Peppers was shipped to the Giants by Dorsey in the Beckham/Olivier Vernon trade.

Brown’s initial first-round pick, Corey Coleman in 2016, was traded to the Bills in August of 2018 for a 2020 seventh-round pick, then released. He was signed and released by the Patriots last season and then picked up by the Giants. On the first day of training camp this year, he suffered a torn ACL and was lost for the season.

Njoku, Garrett and Larry Ogunjobi are the only holdovers from Brown’s 10 picks in 2017 still with the team. Other players in Kitchens’ doghouse and probably not long for this team are Rashard Higgins and Damarious Randall.

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