Cleveland Browns should pursue a trade for Bengals WR John Ross

The Cincinnati Bengals are reportedly shopping wide receiver John Ross, and the Cleveland Browns should be one of the teams exploring the speedy receiver.

One of the potential needs for the Cleveland Browns offense that should look at addressing this off-season is finding a vertical threat at wide receiver.

Although Cleveland possesses a wide receiver corps that played well last season, they lack a true threat on the outside that can beat a defense. Breshad Perriman showed flashes, but is set to be a free agent this off-season. It seems likely that he hits the market to see how teams value him.

One player that would address their need for a speedy vertical receiver is Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver John Ross. NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday that the Bengals will be shopping the 24-year-old wide receiver this off-season.

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Ross broke the NFL Combine record for the fastest 40-yard dash in 2017. Ross ran a 4.22 40-yard dash, breaking Chris Johnson’s record time of 4.24 back in 2008. However, immediately after finishing his run, Ross strained his calves.

That moment has foreshadowed Ross’ NFL career as the wide receiver has struggled to stay healthy. Ross played in only three games his rookie season after dealing with a variety of injuries. However, he did miss multiple games as a healthy scratch. In those three games, Ross did not register a reception on two targets.

His sophomore season was a better year, although it was still an awful season for a former top-ten selection. He missed three games due to injury, including a strained groin. Ross caught 21 passes for 210 yards and seven touchdowns.

Ross has struggled to show much on the field in the first two seasons of his career. It was evident that he was struggling to transition to the NFL game when the Bengals made him a healthy scratch for multiple games in 2017.

However, Ross is still a young receiver that has plenty of time to grow and develop into the receiver the Bengals thought they were getting with the ninth overall selection in the 2017 NFL Draft. That’s why the Browns should be considering a trade for Ross.

Last season, the Browns showed that they have the ability to get the best out of their receivers – most notably Perriman and Rashard Higgins. Part of the credit goes to Freddie Kitchens’ offense and the ability of quarterback Baker Mayfield. But the Browns also have a strong wide receivers coach in Adam Henry.

Ross having the opportunity to work with Henry could be extremely beneficial to his career. And if Henry can get the best out of Ross, then the Browns would have their deep threat at wide receiver.

There is no denying that Ross’ speed creates an advantage for the wide receiver. But Ross will need to refine his other skills in order to be able to use his speed regularly. That’s why working with Henry could be exactly what Ross would need to turn his career around.

For the Browns, it makes sense for a variety of reasons. Ross fills the need for a legitimate vertical threat. The Browns have multiple receivers that excel in the short and intermediate part of the field, but not many that can get over the top of the defense. Having a receiver on the field that the defense has to worry about vertically will create more room to operate for Higgins and Jarvis Landry in the middle of the field.

It also makes sense because the Browns could land a young wide receiver that should not cost a lot of assets. With a new head coach and offensive philosophy in Cincinnati, Ross does not have any connections with the coaching staff. Bengals head coach Zac Taylor will want to get players that fit his offense, and it’s apparent that he does not believe Ross does.

But the cost of Ross will also not be too much considering that he has not shown much in his career so far. Although he was a top-ten selection just a few seasons ago, teams are not going to want to give up valuable assets for Ross based on how he has played so far.

Ross has had a similar career arc as former Browns first round selection Corey Coleman. Coleman dealt with injuries in the first two seasons of his career and also struggled to be a play-maker when he was healthy. He had a better start to his career compared to Ross, but also had a variety of off-field concerns. Despite being a young receiver, the Browns were only able to trade Coleman for a 2020 seventh-round selection.

The Browns have extra selections in the third and fifth rounds of this year’s draft, so they have the extra assets necessary to pull off a trade, even though it may need to take a lower selection to make a trade for Ross.

The only potential hangup for the Browns to trade for Ross is the Bengals may not be willing to trade Ross in the division. If the Bengals are willing to trade with the Browns, they may ask for an extra asset or a better asset than what they are asking for from other teams.

Even if that is the case, the cost of Ross should not be too high. And if Ross can become a consistent deep threat for the Browns offense, adding the young receiver would make a lot of sense for Cleveland.