As we near the midway point of the 2022 NFL regular season, it is becoming clear which teams are going to have a chance to compete for the playoffs and which teams are already making plans for 2023. One of the teams that are stuck in the middle of deciding what to do is the Cleveland Browns.
Cleveland made a huge move this offseason when they acquired Deshaun Watson from the Houston Texans. He has a few more weeks remaining on his suspension and the team was hoping that Jacoby Brissett would hold down the fort in his absence. While he hasn’t lit the world on fire, he is leading what is a top-10 offense with one of the best running games in the NFL.
The reason that the Browns are currently 2-5 after dropping their Week 7 contest against the Baltimore Ravens is that their defense couldn’t stop a cold. The only opponent to not score at least 23 points against Cleveland this season is the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday Night Football in Week 3. That was also the last time that the team won a game.
Knowing the expectations that they had coming into the season, it is no surprise that the Browns’ front office is trying to upgrade the roster. Deon Jones was acquired from the Atlanta Falcons and they could look to make more upgrades.
However, they also need to explore being sellers at the deadline and try recouping some of the draft capital that it cost to land Watson. That could be why running back Kareem Hunt and cornerback Greedy Williams are two players that the Browns are listening to trade offers on.
Hunt is in the last year of his contract and doesn’t look like he is part of the team’s long-term plans. He made a trade request before the season but the Browns had no interest in moving him at that time. If they don’t plan on re-signing him, trading him for draft picks makes sense.
Williams was a second-round pick by the Browns in the 2019 NFL Draft. He has been limited to only two games this season as he dealt with a hamstring injury. But, given his draft pedigree and age, there should be a market for him as he is buried a bit on the Browns’ depth chart.
Likely Day 3 picks would get the job done for either player, but Cleveland could push to land a third-rounder for either of them as well, especially Williams, who is still only 24 years old.
