The Cleveland Browns will enter training camp this year with a lot of business to tend to. Atop the docket will be, of course, finding a starting quarterback. Cleveland’s four-man quarterback competition will surely dominate the headlines once the team returns, but the Browns will have much more to figure out as they hopefully enter a bounce-back season.
When Cleveland cuts its roster down, the franchise will have to decide who is apart of the team’s future. That question could result in the team moving on from some established veterans. Browns reporter Zac Jackson thinks there’s a chance that actually happens this year.
In a recent piece by The Athletic, the NFL staff looked at one one player contract worth monitoring for every team. For Cleveland, Jackson decided to focus on cornerback Greg Newsome II, referring to the veteran defensive back as a trade candidate.
Greg Newsome II named as a trade candidate for the Browns
Newsome is entering the final year of his rookie contract, and since he doesn’t have an extension yet, his future with the team is up in the air. Typically, when teams think it’s a good chance they’ll lose a player in free agency, they opt to trade them so they don’t lose the player for nothing. Jackson thinks that could be a reality for Newsome, as the Browns may have to decide if they want to pay him or Martin Emerson Jr.
"Both Newsome and Martin Emerson Jr, the team’s No. 2 cornerback, are only signed through 2025. If the Browns can only choose one for the future, given their cap issues, Newsome could be moved strictly based on the savings and 2026 cap rollover a trade would create."Zac Jackson (The Athletic)
The only corner that’s seemingly a lock to be a part of the Browns’ long-term plans is Denzel Ward. As far as Newsome and Emerson go, everything is up in the air, and things will start to fall into place once they return for training camp. Depending on how they perform throughout camp and early in the season, they could either be extended or traded.