Cleveland Browns: Khalil Mack yes or no?

The rumor mill is heating up with reports that the Cleveland Browns and Oakland Raiders are in discussions for a trade involving Khalil Mack. The question might not be could we, but should we?

By way of full disclosure, I loved Khalil Mack coming out of college.

I mean LOVED him. I was ready to break my totally unwritten rule that men of a certain age should not wear jerseys if the Cleveland Browns signed Khalil Mack.

Mack has turned out to actually be, perhaps, better than advertised. And I have found that more often than not, I will tune in to a Raiders game to watch him play.

I’ll say it again, I love Khalil Mack.

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But, I’m not sure it makes sense for the Browns to trade for him. It’s painful to say it. Maybe I’ve been a dad too long but there’s a part of me that says the price is too high.

To begin with, it sounds like the asking price from the Raiders is two first-round picks. Now I know everything is negotiable so the Raiders may settle for less. Plus, I’ve never been a big fan of waiting on potential when you can add a player like Mack.

But teams don’t build for long-term success by mortgaging their future. At this point, Mack is a want, not a need. God, what am I going to say next defense wins championships? I think it does. but that’s not the point. Or is it? And wouldn’t Mack make our defense better?

I’m torn.

But what if we didn’t have to give up two firsts? What if we gave up a current player on the roster like Emmanuel Ogbah or Josh Gordon (yes, I’ve seen that – Twitter is a dangerous place my friends)? I might be a little more interested actually because of the proven ability that Mack would bring to the team. We would be trading like talent for like talent.

But — Mack will want Aaron Donald money. He probably deserves it. That’s over $20 million for Mack and we’re going to have to pay Myles Garrett at some point. Not to mention Denzel Ward and, hopefully that quarterback guy what’s his name? Baker something?

General Manager John Dorsey has never been shy to spend cap money. In fact, rumor has it that his ability to blow cap space like it was his job has led to his dismissal from other teams, most recently the Kansas City Chiefs. But just because other teams are doing it, does that mean we should do it too?

I mean seriously do we think money grows on trees?

I would love to see Khalil Mack in a Browns uniform. I don’t know if he’s still jersey worthy, but it would be fun to have that temptation. However, life’s not fair and it may just be that the Browns and Khalil Mack just were not meant to be.

There are other fish in the sea. We should be happy with what we have. How many other Dad cliches, can I throw out?

I’m torn. My heart says let’s get him. My head says let’s pass. Let us know what you think.