The Browns have been advised to trade for a $26 million wide receiver before the deadline.
Over the previous two weeks, analysts have named every section of the Cleveland Browns offense in trade speculation, and if the team does make a move, it will be soon.
On October 21, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini stated that adding to the wide receiver room and along the offensive line were Cleveland’s two biggest priorities. Further shoulder injuries to quarterback Deshaun Watson and an ankle sprain to running back Jerome Ford do not appear to have changed the paradigm.
DeAndre Hopkins of the Tennessee Titans is available for trade as of Friday, October 27, just four days before the NFL’s deadline. According to Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox, the Browns are among the best fits for Hopkins and should pursue him after this weekend’s game against the Seattle Seahawks.
With Tennessee appearing like a deadline seller, Cleveland should reconsider. The Titans signed Hopkins after he was released by Arizona, but the move hasn’t helped them become title contenders.
The 4-2 Browns could be a top AFC contender, but their lackluster passing game (31st in yards) remains a potentially fatal flaw. Watson continues to battle a shoulder injury, but with or without him in the lineup, Cleveland’s offense has been sluggish.
DeAndre Hopkins had previous success while paired with Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Hopkins has been good again this season, despite playing in a subpar offense in Tennessee.
He has caught 27 passes for 376 yards across six games in 2023, putting him on pace for the seventh 1,000-yard campaign of his 11-year NFL career and his first such season since 2020, per Pro Football Reference. Hopkins appeared in only 10 and 9 games, respectively, over the previous two years due to injuries and a suspension from the league for violating its Performance Enhancing Drug (PED) policy.
Analysts linked the Browns to Hopkins during the offseason considering the kind of investment the franchise has recently made in what it hopes will be a Super Bowl roster and because Hopkins has a successful history with Watson. The two started together for 2.5 seasons with the Houston Texans, during which Hopkins earned the last first-team All-Pro honors of his career.
If Cleveland chases Watson in a trade, it won’t necessarily be Watson with whom Hopkins is partnered, at least not right away, since P.J. Walker is expected to start this weekend and may play the following several games while Watson rehabilitates his shoulder. However, the two would eventually reconnect and attempt to take the Browns’ offense down the stretch and into a playoff run with a legitimate shot at the Super Bowl.
DeAndre Hopkins Can First Complement Amari Cooper, then Replace Him if Necessary
Hopkins’ financial asks may have been a non-starter for Cleveland during the offseason, but circumstances have changes since then.
Donovan Peoples-Jones has regressed for the first time in his four-year career and is the one player the Browns may consider trading before the month is out. Elijah Moore has been okay since arriving from the New York Jets, but he hasn’t been the versatile weapon for which Cleveland hoped.
Beyond more need for Hopkins, the Browns have a lot more cap room to sign him after restructuring several of their top players’ contracts in preparation for Watson’s catastrophic cap jump to $64 million in 2024, which he will also carry the following two seasons.
Despite all their work, the Browns are still looking at -$7 million in salary cap space in 2024. However, the team has more than $34.5 million with which to work for the remainder of this year.
Hopkins signed a two-year, $26 million deal with the Titans in the offseason. Cleveland can easily absorb his number into its 2023 cap sheet and can manage the nearly $16 million cap number Hopkins will carry in 2024.
Amari Cooper, the franchise’s top receiver the last two seasons, will enter the final year of his contract next year and will cost the Browns $23.8 million to retain. If Cleveland decides to part with Cooper and save nearly $12.5 million in the process, Hopkins represents a cheaper option to take over the No. 1 role.
If not, the two can be one of the NFL’s most potent pass-catching tandems in 2024, just as they can for the rest of this season if the Browns decide to be aggressive before the trade deadline.
For Heavy.com, Max Dible covers the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, and Golden State Warriors. Before joining Heavy, he worked as a reporter for West Hawaii Today and as the news director for BigIslandNow.com and Pacific Media Group’s family of Big Island radio stations. More information on Max Dible
