NFL free agency: Moves Browns could have made that you wish they made – Community Convo

The Browns mostly made smaller moves, should they have made these in NFL free agency?

NFL free agency isn’t over but a good portion of that part of the NFL offseason has come and went with a ton of players changing teams and/or signing huge new deals. The NFL draft takes center stage with pro days and visits being all the rage.

There are still a few big-name players left on the market but we’ve seen a ton of money flowing with the expanded salary cap. The Cleveland Browns have made a flurry of moves including trading for WR Jerry Jeudy, bringing back DE Za’Darius Smith and signing QB Jameis Winston.

Despite those moves, the Browns have spent the fifth lowest amount of money in free agency, according to Over the Cap. With Cleveland at almost $54 million, the three lowest teams have spent $10 million, $22 million and $36 million thus far.

Browns fans, like every fanbase, generally want their team to do more. Sometimes those are unrealistic, like trading a reasonable amount to get WR Tee Higgins from their in-state rival and then paying him a reasonable contract. “Reasonable” is not realistic in those types of situations.

Instead of wondering what could be, we want to look at deals that actually have been done and see if any you think GM Andrew Berry should have completed. There are far too many to list, you can see OTC’s tracker here, but here are a few of the bigger moves, or interesting names, that Browns fans might have had an interest in:

• RB Saquon Barkley – 3 years, $37.75 million
• RB Derrick Henry – 2 years, $16 million
• RB Zack Moss – 2 years, $8 million
• WR Calvin Ridley – 4 years, $92 million
• WR Marquise Brown – 1 year, $7 million
• WR Gabe Davis – 3 years, $39 million
• TE Dalton Schultz – 3 years, $36 million
• TE Hunter Henry – 3 years, $27 million
• DE Brian Burns – 5 years, $141 million and ‘24 second rounder & ‘25 fifth-rounder traded away
• DE Danielle Hunter – 2 years, $49 million
• DE Bryce Huff – 3 years, $51 million
• DT Christian Wilkins – 4 years, $110 million
• DT Arik Armstead – 3 years, $51 million
• LB Patrick Queen – 3 years, $41 million
• LB Bobby Wagner and Lavonte David – 1 year, $8.5 million each
• LB Jordyn Brooks – 3 years, $26.25

Those are just some of the bigger names but as you look through the lists of deals made, any jump out at you as ones the Browns should have done for that price (or slightly higher to “win” the negotiations)?

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