3 AFC North rivals the Browns can sign in free agency

March 13 at 4:00 p.m. EST is when teams can officially sign contracts with free agents but many have already come to terms with their new franchise. The Cleveland Browns have been active and will bring in a few new players, including Jameis Winston and Jordan Hicks, but they've mostly focused on re-signing their pending free agents.

With most of that out of the way, they can now start looking to fill the remaining holes with whatever outside free agents are still available. And if they wanted to weaken a rival in the process, they could look to sign one of these three players from an opposing AFC North team.

3. James Pierre, CB, Pittsburgh Steelers

This isn't the big name some would want to see signed in free agency but oftentimes, the under-the-radar signings have the largest impact.

Cleveland just lost a key member of their special teams when Michael Ford signed with the Houston Texans. He was added last year to help shore up what they considered a weakness and he did just that. Houston wants him to do the same for them, which leaves a hole in Cleveland's roster.

One way to fill this would be to add James Pierre from the Pittsburgh Steelers. Far from a household name, Pierre was the top gunner for Pittsburgh in 2023 after playing a career-high 269 snaps on special teams. He didn't rack up much statistics but he was able to pin the opponent deep a couple of times by downing the ball inside the five.

He didn't play much on the base defense in 2023 but he has experience there, meaning he could also fill in should the need arise.