Browns would be better off with Russell Wilson
The Cleveland Browns would be in a much better spot right now if they made a trade for Russell Wilson instead of drafting Baker Mayfield.
Whether or not you believe the trade rumor involving Russell Wilson is true, one thing is true. The Cleveland Browns would be in a much better spot right now with Russell Wilson instead of Baker Mayfield. Hue Jackson has denied the rumor, but he is hardly the best source of information.
What would it cost to get Russell Wilson?
To be blunt, a lot. The 1st pick in the draft would be a starting point. 4th overall would probably been the table as well. Even one of the Cleveland’s 2nd rounders, possibly the 33rd pick. (There is no basis for these specific picks, just an attempt to make something work that would be expensive from a draft pick standpoint). This is a lot, but not unacceptable for a team looking for an answer at the quarterback position. The Cleveland Browns would be a better team right now if they made this trade for one reason and one reason only. The quarterback position would no longer be an issue. Cleveland instead opted to draft Baker Mayfield, Denzel Ward, and Austin Corbett.
Nobody is quite sure what Mayfield is and the more we see of him the less there is to like. Ward is a good corner, but a cornerback should not take precedent over a quarterback. Austin Corbett has since been traded and the less said about him, the better. If the cost was Cleveland’s first three picks in the 2018 draft, it is an easy decision to make. This is a trade that should be made every single time. 5-7 years of really good quarterback play and a few more at the end that are average would have been worth the cost if Cleveland really wants to climb out of the basement of the AFC.
Roster additions/subtractions that may not have been necessary
Maybe the Browns still trade for Odell Beckham Jr. and sign Austin Hooper, maybe not. What is known is that the Browns would not be in a position where top-tier talent is needed for the quarterback to be successful. The team could build from a more balanced approach. An effort would be made to build on both sides of the ball instead of simply punting on defense this year and hope they can thread the needle with one-year deals. The Browns would not have to overcome the shortcomings of their quarterback and could build up their offense and their defense. The fact that Baker Mayfield needs this much talent around him says a lot about his future as an NFL quarterback doesn’t it?
Cleveland traded away Jabrill Peppers and Kevin Zeitler in the blockbuster deal to acquire Beckham and Olivier Vernon. Perhaps both could have remained in Cleveland resulting in the offensive line and defense looking very different compared to now. One could argue they are significantly better with those two in the mix rather than without them. Add in the 2019 1st round pick used to acquire Beckham and this team may have been better off overall than they currently are now. They would not have been Super Bowl contenders, but playoffs would not be out of the question.
Looking at this version of the team they would be a solid team pegged for playoff contention with no glaring holes on either side of the football. This is completely different compared to what they actually look like now in their current form.
There is one downside
While fixing the quarterback situation in Cleveland is the ultimate goal, there is one downside to this scenario. Russell Wilson would have won enough games to extend Hue Jackson’s time in Cleveland and the last thing anyone would have wanted is more Hue Jackson.
