Believe it or not, the Cleveland Browns have seen better days in their franchise, but the team that went 1-31 in two years seems a lot more fun to watch than the 2024 Browns.
Cleveland has to start looking toward the 2025 season. Any player who won’t help them in the future could be moved at the trade deadline in two weeks, and one of those guys could be a star defensive back.
Cleveland Browns Could Part Ways With A Star Corner
The Browns have three solid cornerbacks: Denzel Ward, Martin Emerson Jr., and Greg Newsome, but one of them could be gone in the next few weeks.
Ward is one of the best corners in the league, and the Browns have shown no signs they want to trade him. Emerson is only in year three and should be part of Cleveland’s future, but Newsome has taken a few steps back as a player since his rookie year in 2021, and he could be traded soon.
Kristopher Knox from Bleacher Report put out a 2024 NFL Trade Block Big Board Entering Week 8, which has Newsome ranked third overall.
Knox had a lot of great things to say about the former Northwestern corner.
As previously noted, the Browns are cooked in 2024, and they’re facing a dire financial situation in 2025. They should be very eager to land draft capital and find cap relief. Moving 24-year-old cornerback Greg Newsome II could provide both.
Newsome has been a reliable starter, when healthy, since joining Cleveland as a 2021 first-round pick. He’s set to play on the fifth-year option in 2025, though, and trading him would clear next year’s $13.4 million salary from the books.
Good, young corners typically bring a premium price on the trade market. That won’t be lost on the Browns, who should be aiming to land their next quarterback of the future in the 2025 draft.
The Browns will have to pay Deshaun Watson in 2025 and 2026 regardless of his status, but there’s no guarantee that he’ll be healthy next year. There’s no guarantee that Cleveland wants him back under center either.
Because of Jaylen Watson’s injury, the Chiefs should already be on the phone with Cleveland about Newsome’s availability. Kansas City is chasing history—no team has ever won three consecutive Super Bowls—and replacing Watson should be a priority.
The Buccaneers should also take a look at Newsome, if he can be had. The Buccaneers are firmly in the NFC playoff mix but recently placed cornerback Jamel Dean on injured reserve with a hamstring injury.
Newsome is still a young player, only in his fourth season, and the Browns did pick up his fifth-year option for next year, so he’s not one of these veteran players the team needs to move right away, but if they can find the right deal and get a nice draft pick, Newsome could be seeing his way out of town.
