The Cleveland Browns have known they need more firepower in the receiver room for months and tried in earnest to acquire some ahead of this season.
Jeff Legwold of ESPN reported on Saturday, December 16, that Cleveland made several concerted efforts to deal for Denver Broncos wideout Jerry Jeudy, but to no avail.
“[Jeudy] was the subject of trade rumors for most of the offseason,” Legwold wrote. “Team sources said the Cleveland Browns made multiple runs at acquiring Jeudy.”
Jeudy was coming off of a career campaign in 2022, hauling in 67 catches for 972 yards and 6 TDs.
Cleveland’s interest in Jeudy offers insight into the type of player the Browns were/are/will be looking to add to the offense — a speed-first wideout, preferably with a first-round pedigree, playing on a rookie deal.
Jeudy is a big-play threat with field-stretching speed who could play opposite Amari Cooper on the outside. A former first-rounder (No. 15 overall in 2020 out of Alabama), draft analyst Lance Zierlein accurately projected Jeudy as a first-year starter.
Jeudy’s type of talent demands a significant salary. However, he is playing in the fourth season of his initial four-year, $15 million contract, which renders him relatively affordable in 2023. The savings/talent combination the Browns sought in Jeudy will extend into 2024, when Denver will pay the wideout $13 million on his fifth-year option.
Had Cleveland executed a trade for Jeudy, the team would have acquired the receiver’s final two cost-controlled seasons as well as an option to keep him around through 2026 via the franchise tag if the Browns deemed Jeudy worthy of that investment.
Jeudy is not having a spectacular season, though part of his relative lack of production can be attributed to the Broncos’ dismal 1-5 start. Through 12 games, including eight starts, Jeudy has caught 42 passes for 507 yards and 1 touchdown, per Pro Football Reference.
