Fan-Favorite Wide Receiver Ditches Browns for Eagles
Wide receiver Austin Watkins turned down a chance to return to the Cleveland Browns and instead will be signing a reserve/future contract with the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Browns had offered Watkins a deal but he took time to weigh other offers, per Brad Stainbrook of theOBR.com. The 25-year-old felt like the Eagles were a better fit for his talents and will get a fresh start there.
Watkins turned into a fan number one in the preseason, driving the Browns in getting yards during the four show matchups. He was the main Cleveland player with twofold digit gatherings, indenting 16 for 257 yards and a couple of scores.
Watkins was known by the Eagles. His most impressive showing of the preseason came against Philadelphia. Watkins scored seven gets for 139 yards.
Watkins was cut toward the finish of the preseason however added back to the training crew. He didn’t show up in that frame of mind with the Earthy colors and didn’t feel like he got a decent deal, per Noah Weiskopf of theOBR.com.
“While sources say Watkins coexists with the Browns front office, there’s likewise an inclination that he wasn’t offered a fair chance this season to grandstand his capacities, particularly in the wake of having the preseason that he did,” Weiskopf composed.
The Browns reported the marking of nine players to hold/prospects contracts on Monday, January 15. That included receiver Jaelon Darden, cornerback Vincent Gray, running back John Kelly Jr., tight end Zaire Mitchell-Paden, offensive tackle Justin Murray, defensive end Lonnie Phelps, linebacker Charlie Thomas III, defensive end Isaiah Thomas, and defensive tackle Chris Williams. Also on the team were running back John Kelly Jr. and tight end Zaire Mitchell-Paden.
Browns Need to Track down Help for Amari Cooper
The Browns will be looking for quality profundity to assist with supporting Amari Cooper next season. The 29-year-old was the impetus for the Browns’ passing game, which used five distinct quarterbacks this season. Cooper finished with a career-high 1,250 yards and 5 touchdowns on 72 catches despite the quarterbacking uncertainty.
Elijah Moore was the Browns’ second-driving wide collector with 640 yards on 59 snatches. He likewise had a couple of scores. In any case, beyond those two, the Browns had extremely restricted commitments from the remainder of the getting profundity graph. Newbie Cedric Tillman was next up with 21 gets for 224 yards.
With Deshaun Watson expected to return all set next season, the Browns need to add more weapons to make their flying game more risky.
During his season-ending press conference on January 14, Stefanski stated, “I think that’s definitely [GM Andrew Berry’s] desire to add as many good players as you can.” Be that as it may, I feel far better about the folks on our program. Not to go over every man, but I’m really happy with what these guys were able to accomplish.
Browns Need to Work on Expansion for Amari Cooper
Cooper has demonstrated that he can in any case be a tip top No. 1 beneficiary however is entering the last year of his agreement. Cooper was initially considered a cut candidate due to his $23.7 million cap hit for the upcoming season.
Notwithstanding, the Browns need him on the program pushing ahead, and focusing on an expansion could assist with bringing down that number. Spotrac’s determined market an incentive for Cooper is 3 years and $70 million, procuring him around $23 million for every season.
Moore will remain under contract with the Browns for another season. His modest cap hit is $1.8 million. The expectation is that youthful weapons David Chime and Tillman will keep on advancing too, adding to the group’s profundity.
Michael Pittman Jr., Tee Higgins, and Calvin Ridley are three notable names that the Browns could pursue in free agency in order to pair with Cooper.
