The Cleveland Browns have made a couple of moves already in the last few days, or at least agreed to them, but with the Deshaun Watson interest lingering, Andrew Berry hasn’t been as busy as he normally is. So far:
- Cleveland has agreed to trade for Amari Cooper
- The Browns have released Jarvis Landry
- The team has agreed to a deal with Taven Bryan
Cleveland still has a number of needs including adding another wide receiver and along the defensive line where Myles Garrett is the lone proven starter even with Bryan’s addition.
The team does have some depth at positions on the defense including cornerback and linebacker. From that linebacker depth, the Browns have reportedly agreed to another trade:
Trade! The #Patriots are sending OLB Chase Winovich to the #Browns for LB Mack Wilson, per sources.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 15, 2022
Wilson has been an up and down player for Cleveland but excelled on special teams last year.
Winovich is going into his fourth season after being selected by the New England Patriots in the third round out of Michigan. The hybrid linebacker/defensive end has started nine games for the Patriots and has 11 sacks to his name but none last season.
With both in the last year of their contracts, a change of scenery and roles may be helpful for both players. For Cleveland, Winovich will probably step in at defensive end to help replace Takk McKinley, who is a free agent and will probably miss most of the year with an Achilles injury.
The Browns still likely need to find a replacement, whether a veteran or in the NFL draft, to replace Jadeveon Clowney but Winovich can be an important part of the rotation on the defensive line.