Cleveland Browns: 3 wide receiver trade targets in 2022
By Greg Newland
![NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - JANUARY 05: Michael Thomas #13 of the New Orleans Saints in action during the NFC Wild Card Playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings at Mercedes Benz Superdome on January 05, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - JANUARY 05: Michael Thomas #13 of the New Orleans Saints in action during the NFC Wild Card Playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings at Mercedes Benz Superdome on January 05, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/https-3A-2F-2Fdawgpounddaily-com-2Fwp-content-2Fuploads-2Fgetty-images-2F2017-2F07-2F1198155615-850x560-a9c5ea9b248cdab979feb7c32757d05f0db6dc12c46ddee4cb821cb3269dc60e.jpg)
The Cleveland Browns may look to avoid high free agency prices at the wide receiver position by trying to find a trade option. Here are three targets.
The Cleveland Browns find themselves in a very interesting situation for the 2022 offseason. Not only do they have a few key pieces that will be free agents, but they also have a couple of guys that are entering the last year of their rookie deal that will likely get extended at some point. That means there will be a lot of money going out, and maybe not as much cap savings coming through.
One position that I see being decimated to save to cap space is wide receiver. This is a position that drastically underperformed in 2021, and the two top guys really just need a fresh start in a new place.
Jarvis Landry has a cap hit of over $16.3 million in 2022, and after a season of just 52 catches and 570 yards, it’s safe to say the Browns will move on. He had a couple of great years for the team but appears to be past his prime or needing different scenery.
Rashard Higgins also seems like a likely candidate to not be resigned. Higgins seemed to have an early connection with Baker Mayfield, but he has shown no consistency and only has 275 yards last year. The Browns were able to keep him on the cheap the last two years because of little interest from others, but I see the two finally parting ways in 2022.
With a high draft pick (No. 13) that many believe will be utilized on a wide receiver and money that needs to be spent at other positions (defensive end and possibly tight end), you could see Andrew Berry make a trade for a wide receiver.
Find a guy with a friendlier contract and give up draft pick assets to acquire. That gives him a year or two to evaluate the player in the system before paying the big bucks.
Here are three guys that could be trade targets.