Tag: Browns trade

What could the Browns get in return if they trade David Njoku?

A look at what the Cleveland Browns might expect in return for trading TE David Njoku

David Njoku wants to be traded. The Browns tight end has requested a trade via his new agent, Drew Rosenhaus.

The Browns are under no obligation to deal Njoku, who has two years left on his rookie contract. Cleveland picked up the fifth-year option on his contract earlier this offseason, and he’s being counted upon to be a productive part of new head coach Kevin Stefanski’s two-TE offense. Every indication is the team values Njoku’s ability to rebound from an injury-marred 2019 where he caught just five passes for 41 yards in four games.

But what could they get in return for Njoku?

The pie in the sky is what the Jaguars got in return for 2016 first-rounder Jalen Ramsey. The Rams sent Jacksonville first-round picks in 2020 and 2021 and a 4th-rounder in 2021 for the All-Pro defensive back. Alas, that’s a completely unrealistic pie.

For starters, Ramsey was an established star, one of the top young defenders in the NFL. Njoku in three seasons (36 career games) has produced what is an average year for Eagles TE Travis Kelce: 93 receptions, 1,066 yards, nine TDs. There is no comparison between the two other than wanting off the respective teams that drafted them in the first rounds.

Thinking the Browns would get anything close to that in return is delusional. A more realistic haul is what the Rams got in return for the player they shipped out to make room for Ramsey, CB Marcus Peters.

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The Ravens sent a 2020 5th-round draft pick and backup LB Kenny Young, a 4th-round pick in 2018 who played sparingly in Los Angeles after the trade, to get Peters. An enigmatic former first-rounder (2015, 18th overall), Peters’ prickly personality got him run out of Kansas City despite making the Pro Bowl in his first two seasons.

Peters thrived in Baltimore after the trade and earned All-Pro honors, notching two pick-6s in 10 games with the Ravens and leading the NFL in INT return yards.

Njoku has periodically flashed the potential to be an impact receiving talent at tight end, but he’s never put it all together with any consistency. Any team trading for him would be hoping for a Peters-like rise, but that’s not a given with Njoku.

Now consider why Njoku wants to be traded. He hired new agent Drew Rosenhaus to help him maximize his earning potential with the lucrative second contract. The Browns just invested the biggest free agent contract ever given to a tight end to Austin Hooper, so that well looks dry in Cleveland. The desire for a big payday for a relatively unproven player is a headache many teams simply won’t want.

That’s why I think the most realistic return is what the Seahawks got in return from the Steelers for a quick rental of tight end Nick Vannett last year. Desperate for healthy bodies, the Steelers dealt a 5th-round pick to Seattle for Vannett. He wound up catching 13 passes in 13 games for Pittsburgh, scoring four TDs.

Njoku could, and probably should, be significantly more productive than Vannett as a receiver. That’s why there will be a market. Just don’t expect it to be much more than a future 5th-round pick…if he’s even dealt at all in 2020.

Browns trade back from No. 74, Saints select LB Zack Baun

Browns trade back from No. 74, Saints select LB Zack Baun

The Browns have made another trade. In the third round, the Browns dealt out of the No. 74 pick.

GM Andrew Berry shipped the pick to the New Orleans Saints for the No. 88 overall later in the third round. They also picked up a 2021 third-round pick.

With the acquired pick, the Saints selected Wisconsin LB Zack Baun. He is a player who would have fit in with the Browns nicely.

Browns trade No. 41 pick to the Colts for 2 picks

Browns trade No. 41 pick to the Colts for 2 picks

We have our first trade involving the Cleveland Browns in the 2020 NFL Draft. The Browns traded the No. 41 pick to the Indianapolis Colts.

In exchange for the pick, the Browns acquired the No. 44 pick and the No. 160 pick, a fifth-rounder later in the 2020 draft. The Colts moved up to select Wisconsin RB Jonathan Taylor at the 41 spot.

It’s the first draft trade of the Andrew Berry era as the team’s GM.

Andy Janovich ‘really excited’ to join Browns with his trade now official

The Browns sent a 2021 7th round pick to Denver for Janovich

The Cleveland Browns trade for fullback Andy Janovich is now official. Janovich joined the Browns on Friday after the team finalized sending a seventh-round draft pick in 2021 to the Denver Broncos for his services.

Under new head coach Kevin Stefanski, the Browns are bringing back the fullback into the offense. It has not been a featured position under the last couple of offensive coaching regime. Stefanski is certainly happy to have Janovich, a player he specifically sought after, in Cleveland.

“I’m really excited to add Andy into our group,” Stefanski said via a press release. “He’s a schematic fit to what we want to be. He has all the intangibles you think of when you think of fullbacks. He’s as tough as they come. He’s a team player through and through. Fits the mentality of what we’re trying to be.”

Janovich is ready to get to work with his new team.

“I’m really excited,” Janovich said on the Browns’ website. “They’re going to have an offense like (Broncos coach Gary) Kubiak had or I had with (Eagles and former Broncos coach Rich) Scangarello here. I’m really excited I’m going to a place that wants to use and utilize what I can bring.”

He’s known for his lead blocking in the run game, but Janovich has flashed decent hands and the ability to be an asset in the passing game too.

Browns trading for Vikings safety Anthony Harris still a possibility

Trading for Vikings safety Anthony Harris still a possibility as a sign-and-trade to reunite Harris with Browns coach Kevin Stefanski

One of the presumptive prime free agency targets for the Cleveland Browns was Vikings safety Anthony Harris. The status changed tense from “is” to “was” on Monday, when Minnesota elected to use the franchise tag on the 28-year-old playmaker.

While signing Harris on the open market is no longer an option, the Browns can still land him via a trade. The Vikings are open to a sign-and-trade deal for the NFL’s reigning interception champ, and Cleveland still makes the most sense of any possible suitor.

Harris is a perfect fit for what the Browns need in the back of the defense, a heady safety who can make plays on the ball and not ruin the defense with poor tackling. Over the last two seasons, Harris has nine INTs and over 100 tackles for Minnesota.

The Vikings ties with new Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski are tough to ignore. Stefanski had to go against Harris every day in practice. He’s young enough to merit a long-term deal, and the Browns do have some draft capital to dangle and the cap room to take on any big new Harris contract.

Landing Harris in a sign-and-trade would immediately resolve the Browns’ biggest defensive need, and does so with a proven professional who understands and knows the new coach well. It’s something GM Andrew Berry should heavily pursue.

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1 year later: Evaluating the Odell Beckham Jr. blockbuster trade

Evaluating who won the Odell Beckham Jr. trade from the New York Giants to the Cleveland Browns one year later

One year ago today the Cleveland Browns shocked the sports world. Then-GM John Dorsey executed a blockbuster trade with the New York Giants to bring high-profile Pro Bowl wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to the Browns.

In exchange for Beckham, the Browns send two 2019 draft picks (first and third rounds) and 2018 first-round safety Jabrill Peppers to New York.

Beckham had a star-crossed first season in Cleveland. He topped 1,000 receiving yards on 74 receptions, but he got there inefficiently. There were uncharacteristic drops, there were miscommunications with QB Baker Mayfield, there were missed opportunities. Beckham posted his lowest catch rate (55 percent) and catches per game (4.6) of his 6-year career, scoring just four TDs.

He spent the year battling a sports hernia injury that required postseason surgery. Beckham did play all 16 games for the first time in 2016.

Browns fans know very well the Beckham end of the trade. But what about the Giants and how the players they received in exchange fared?

Peppers started 11 games for the Giants in his third NFL season. Playing more of a hybrid LB/strong safety role in the New York defense, Peppers proved to be the same player he was in Cleveland — a solid starter who plays better near the line of scrimmage in both run and pass defense. Peppers racked up 76 tackles in 11 games, just missing his career-high of 79 with the Browns in 2018, a total he posted in 16 games.

His Pro Football Focus grade dropped from Peppers’ last year in Cleveland to his first year in New York, notably in the tackling metric. Per PFF, Peppers missed 12 tackles compared to just 11 in 2018, though he did force three fumbles. He also notched the first pick-6 of his career on his only INT of the season before going on the shelf with the same injury (transverse process fracture) that Browns WR Jarvis Landry played through in 2019.

New York drafted defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence with the No. 17 overall pick acquired in the trade. It was an immediate draft hit for the Giants. Lawrence started all 16 games and played well in his over 700 snaps of work. He wound up earning the third-best PFF grade of any Giants defender (Peppers was 11th) and finished second on the team with 21 QB hurries.

Lawrence finished his rookie year with 38 total tackles, four TFLs and 2.5 sacks. The big man from Clemson also forced a fumble and batted down one pass. Playing roughly the same role for the Giants that Larry Ogunjobi does for the Browns, he looks like a nice long-term starter for New York.

The third-round pick turned into Oshane Ximines, a situational pass rusher who bagged 4.5 sacks as a rookie. Playing mostly as a rush OLB, Ximines struggled against the run and in limited coverage opportunities. He figures to get more looks in his second season after making the big jump from Old Dominion to the NFC East.

The Browns snagged an enigmatic, occasionally brilliant wideout who gutted out a tough season in an unfamiliar offense while playing through a painful injury. The Giants picked up two solid young defensive starters and a useful sub-package player capable of more. The early return favors the Giants, but a healthy Beckham with more familiarity with his QB and teammates still offers a higher impact ceiling in Cleveland. That needs to happen for Beckham in 2020 or else the Giants will claim the win in the blockbuster trade.

 

On this date: Browns traded Kevin Zeitler for Olivier Vernon 1 year ago

It’s not a trade that has held up well for the Browns

One year ago today, on March 8th, 2019, the Cleveland Browns made their first big trade of the offseason with the New York Giants. A day after dumping veteran LB Jamie Collins, the Browns dealt away longtime starting right guard Kevin Zeitler to the Giants for EDGE Olivier Vernon.

One year later, it’s not a trade many in Cleveland would make again.

Vernon struggled with injuries in his first Browns season. He played in just 10 games, registering 3.5 sacks and a career-low 26 tackles with his new team. While Vernon played better than the raw statistics would indicate, he did not have the anticipated impact on the Browns’ defense.

Zeitler was his typical solid self in his first season in New York. Starting 15 games for a rejuvenated OL, Zeitler allowed three sacks and 16 QB pressures according to Pro Football Focus grading. He did register his highest overall season grade since 2016, his last year with the Cincinnati Bengals before joining the Browns. His replacements in Cleveland, which included Wyatt Teller and Eric Kush, scored considerably lower in PFF’s grades.

Technically the trade did not go down until the new league year began, but the 8th was the date of the announced agreement to make it happen. It was quickly overshadowed by the blockbuster Odell Beckham Jr. trade, a deal that the Giants allegedly “laughed at” before making this trade involving Zeitler and Vernon.