3 Surprise players Cleveland Browns should be willing to trade for the right quarterback
By Greg Newland
The Cleveland Browns have a roster that is ready to compete for a title, they are just missing a quarterback. They should consider trading these guys.
The Cleveland Browns sit in an extremely interesting situation. They enter the 2022 season with a very talented roster. Even if they don’t retain their top free agents and don’t sign anyone (which is unlikely), they still have a great roster.
What was the biggest issue last season? A quarterback that couldn’t deliver the ball with accuracy and struggled with turnovers. He was fighting through an injury for most of the year but was the main catalyst for this offense struggling.
Baker Mayfield had his non-throwing shoulder operated on this offseason, and should be fully healthy for the 2022 season, but which Mayfield will we see? And truthfully, was 2020 Mayfield even enough to carry this team to a Super Bowl?
Remember, in his “breakout” year, Mayfield had 3,500 passing yards, 26 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions. I’m not saying this is bad, but the guy has never eclipsed 4,000 yards passing in four years in a league where that is almost the norm.
Mayfield now comes into his fifth season on the fifth-year option of his rookie deal that is guaranteed for over $18 million. There likely won’t be a ton of interest in other teams wanting to take on that contract, but there is no doubt that Andrew Berry and the Cleveland Browns will have their eyes opened.
Some fans will hate this philosophy, but these three players should be in play if an elite quarterback becomes available via trade. I know it’s taken years to gather this talent, but there isn’t one player on this roster that has consistently been the sole reason the team is winning games.
And unfortunately, there are a few scenarios where I could argue that Mayfield lost the game from his play.
With all that being said, the Browns could be looking for a new signal-caller, and with the Washington Commanders in a similar boat and saying they would trade anyone — including Chase Young — it got the question going as to whether or not Cleveland should ship off some of their star power for the right quarterback. And here are three guys they should consider.