Cleveland Browns trade Corey Coleman to Buffalo Bills

In a shocking move, late Sunday night, the Browns traded wide receiver Corey Coleman to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for a draft pick. Is this the analytics side of John Dorsey’s operation at work, or is something much more interesting afoot?

ESPN’s ever-jawdropping NFL reporter Adam Schefter broke the news, late Sunday night: the Cleveland Browns have traded wide receiver Corey Coleman.

In exchange for a draft pick, the Browns let go of maybe one of the most “up and down” receivers in the franchise’s recent memory.

Coming out in the 2016 NFL Draft class, many viewed the blazing fast Coleman as the cream of the receiver crop. Freakishly athletic, undeniably talented, and most of all wildly productive, many expected Coleman to be a number-one option in Cleveland from day one.

Really though, he never panned out due to hand injuries, rough quarterback play, and a team which was constantly in flux.

Now, Coleman is off to be a top target for either Josh Allen or A.J. McCarron in Buffalo. Even though the Browns were likely about to lose a top receiver, they seemed content to let Coleman go for just a single draft pick. Reading into it, this can mean a bevy of things in terms of Cleveland’s receiving corps.

Most importantly of all, this means that general manager John Dorsey believes that the Browns have enough depth at the wide receiver position to part with a player of Coleman’s talent.

Perhaps they know that Josh Gordon is coming back soon, or Antonio Callaway or Rashard Higgins are finally coming into their own. Both have been lighting up camp, and Higgins has become one of Baker Mayfield’s favorite camp targets.

Either way, this deal has come as a shocker. So early into training camp, maybe it’s best to trust that John Dorsey and the Browns know what they’re doing with this move. Corey Coleman is gone from Cleveland, and now it’s time for another wide receiver, like a Callaway or a Higgins, to take center stage in his place.