The Cleveland Browns will miss one of their most vocal leaders and a respected locker room member for next season. David Njoku has officially announced that he's going to leave in free agency after nine years.
Of course, this isn't necessarily surprising. Injuries aside, Njoku's production took a big hit once he started playing alongside Harold Fannin Jr. The rookie out of Bowling Green is a budding star, and the Browns will prioritize his development.
With that in mind, the Browns should probably consider listening to what CBS Sports analyst Ryan Wilson has to say. Just last week, he predicted the Browns would use their No. 24 pick to draft Oregon star TE Kenyon Sadiq. That idea was laughable at the time, but it might actually carry some weight now.
" Sadiq oozes athleticism, will run through arm tackles and is used all over the formation. He can be a quick-game target as an outside WR and is used effectively on jet sweeps. He's also one of the best blocking TEs in college football who is an asset on special teams, too. He reminds me of Kadarius Toney in the quick game and Anquan Boldin in space with the ball in his hands," Wilson wrote.
Browns' tight end reset may force an unexpected move at No. 24 overall
Granted, the Browns have a greater need for a wide receiver than another tight end. That said, there's a chance that Carnell Tate, Jordyn Tyson, and Makai Lemon will all be off the table by the time the Browns are back on the clock at No. 24 overall.
If that's the case, they will probably be better off taking an offensive lineman and focusing on their wide receiver position in free agency, the trade market, and the latter rounds of the draft. Or they could pivot and pair Fannin Jr. with another elite pass-catching tight end. He hauled in a career-best eight touchdowns and averaged 11.0 yards per catch in his final season in college.
Sadiq is an athletic freak who, like Fannin, is a master at piling up yards after the catch. Also, as Wilson stated, he played some outside wide receiver for the Oregon Ducks, so they might want to give him a shot there as well.
Todd Monken's offenses have thrived with multiple pass-catching tight ends. He helped Brock Bowers and Darnell Washington thrive in Georgia and did the same with Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely in Baltimore. So, even though it might be a little outside of the box, this move actually makes more sense than people realize.