3 Moves the Cleveland Browns Must Make This Offseason
Will the Browns finally turn the page from Deshaun Watson? What happens with Myles Garrett?
As the NFL offseason officially begins for all 32 teams, we will examine what each franchise must do in free agency and the NFL Draft to emerge a better, more complete team when the 2025 season kicks off in September.
The Cleveland Browns find themselves at an organizational crossroads.
With quarterback Deshaun Watson’s contract hanging around the franchise’s neck like an albatross, and their star edge rusher and former Defensive Player of The Year requesting a trade, the Browns must decide whether to tear things down to the studs and embrace a full rebuild or try to piecemeal a team together on the fly that can make a push in the AFC North.
There might not be any easy or right answers for general manager Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski.
Watson might not even be available in 2025, as he continues to work his way back from a ruptured Achilles tendon, so it could prove prudent for the Browns to select his heir apparent in this year’s draft, which would likely only further infuriate Myles Garrett, who made his desire to play for a Super Bowl contender quite clear when he formally requested a trade.
This has the potential to be a trajectory-altering offseason for the Browns, and there are no clear paths forward in 2025, and beyond.
Here’s a full breakdown of the Browns’ assets to rebuild with this offseason, and three moves that could turn the tide in Cleveland.
Cleveland Browns Cap Space
Complicating matters further, and thanks in large part to the Browns’ ill-conceived Watson mega-deal, Cleveland enters this offseason upwards of $27 million over the cap. Suboptimal for a team that won just three games and might be on the verge of dealing away their best player—despite Berry’s assertion that the Browns have zero interest in actually trading Garrett. Cutting players like linebacker Jordan Hicks, and Jack Conklin would save upwards of $17.5 million and could be a baseline for Berry to trim some space under the cap. But, there may need to be some draconian cuts in Cleveland to merely get cap-compliant before free agency begins.
Cleveland Browns Draft Picks
Here’s where things get very interesting for the Browns.
Owners of the No. 2 overall pick in this spring’s draft, if Cleveland believes that there could possibly still be some high-level quarterback play waiting to emerge from Watson in the coming seasons, and opts not to trade Garrett, Penn State All-American edge rusher Abdul Carter could potentially be in play (if the Titans pass on him). Taking Carter would create one of the premier and most disruptive pass-rush duos in the sport.
Likewise, if Berry decides that the time is now to begin starting the clock on Watson and an organizational reset is in the cards, there’s also the possibility that the Browns will have their pick of the top quarterbacks in this year’s class.
Here’s the Brown’s full slate of picks:
First Round, No. 2 overall
Second Round, No. 33 overall
Third Round, No. 67 overall
Third Round, No. 94 overall (via Buffalo)
Fourth Round, No. 103 overall
Fifth Round, No. 165 overall (via Detroit)
Sixth Round, No. 181 overall
Sixth Round, No. 194 overall (via Miami)
Sixth Round, No. 202 overall (via Minnesota)
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Three Moves The Browns Must Make For The Offseason to Be a Success
Draft Shedeur Sanders
It’s time.
The Browns need to start the clock on the end of the Deshaun Watson debacle, and Berry can figure out a way to make Garrett whole or acquiesce to his demands and trade him somewhere he’ll have a chance to win a ring, later.
If both quarterbacks are on the board, Cleveland has the luxury of time when it comes to being able to develop Sanders and help him reach what might be a loftier ceiling than Miami’s Cam Ward’s.
Besides, Sanders’ ability to thrive in the short and intermediate passing game may make him an ideal fit when it comes to maximizing tight end David Njoku and wide receiver Elijah Moore’s strengths.
According to Pro Football Focus, Sanders had the eighth-most screen pass yards in the country last season at Colorado, while his turnover-worthy play rate was third-best among college quarterbacks. The outlet awards Sanders a 92.8 intermediate passing grade, among the highest in this year’s class, and an even more impressive 94.8 deep-ball rating.
The Browns have the opportunity to get their quarterback of the future and re-open a four-year window of him on his rookie contract. It’s the prudent thing to do.
Draft RB TreVeyon Henderson
The 2024 season underscored the resurgent value of elite running backs across the league—just ask the Philadelphia Eagles how valuable Saquon Barkley was to their Super Bowl run.
The philosophy of running backs not mattering, until they do, applies here, though.
Cleveland isn’t in a financial situation nor is their roster ready to break the bank for an Aaron Jones, J.K. Dobbins, or any of the other veteran backs expected to be available in free agency this spring.
Henderson, however, is an explosive home run hitter who averaged 7.1 yards per carry last season at Ohio State, while rushing for 1,016 yards and 10 touchdowns and adding 27 receptions for 284 yards and another score.
A versatile playmaker, Henderson has the potential to be a core contributor for the Browns’ offense for years to come.
Sign Eagles DT Milton Williams
There’s this notion that “the salary cap is fake,” and there may never be a better litmus test or case study than this year’s Browns offseason.
If Berry can work some magic and create any sort of spending flexibility, he should toss all of it into the middle of the table to sign Eagles defensive tackle Milton Williams.
Williams is an ascending and disruptive talent, coming off a career year in Philadelphia where he logged 40 quarterback pressures in addition to his five regular season sacks before adding two more on Patrick Mahomes in the Eagles’ Super Bowl victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. Pro Football Focus lists Williams as the NFL’s second-highest graded interior pass rusher while also awarding him a 70.1 overall grade.
The Eagles have a longstanding organizational philosophy of the defense’s backbone being a dominant line of scrimmage, so general manager Howie Roseman may wind up moving heaven and earth to keep him. But, if Williams somehow shakes loose, and Berry can structure a lucrative contract, the 25-year-old needs to be the Browns’ top target because he’d be plugging arguably the biggest hole on the defense while serving as the foundation of that group moving forward.
In Case You Missed It
I dunno, I feel like the Sanders Circus is the last thing this organization needs. There are places it could work, but I do not think Cleveland is one of them. I’d rather see them draft Abdul Carter, either as a compliment or replacement for Garrett, and use the second round pick on someone like Kyle McCord.