NFL free agency is nearly here with legal tampering beginning on Monday, March 11 at noon Eastern. Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry is already hard at work doing what he does best, manipulating the salary cap ahead of free agency. Could he also be looking to trade former first-round pick Greg Newsome II?
Berry will explore all avenues to move money around. Writing for The Washington Post, Jason La Canfora said he has heard the Browns could be shopping one of their corners to balance out some of the big contracts they have.
This makes sense with three talented cornerbacks on the roster, one of which has already been paid. The team can’t sign them all to massive extensions. Denzel Ward seems to be safe after the team restructured his deal this offseason, and Martin Emerson Jr. still has two cheap years on his rookie contract as a former third-round pick.
The move that would make the most sense is trading Greg Newsome II. The team has yet to make a decision on his fifth-year option, which would cost $13.3 million. The deadline for that is May 2.
Newsome struggled the most out of the trio, giving up several big plays in key moments of games.
In the end, the team could keep all of them, but moving on from Newsome to free up cap space and add draft assets makes too much sense.
