Trading Greg Newsome II felt like the wrong move at the wrong time

Another day, another surprise trade out of the Cleveland Browns. On Monday, the Browns opted to ship out Joe Flacco. Now, they sent Greg Newsome to Jacksonville in a shocking decision.

The Browns packaged Newsome with a sixth-round pick from the Jets for Tyson Campbell and a seventh-round pick.

This decision boiled down to money for the Browns. Newsome has been waiting on a new contract extension, but the Browns didn’t have the funds ready to get it done. This was a contract year for Newsome, and truthfully, he was playing like a man deserving of an extension.

Newsome came to the Browns in the first round of the 2021 NFL draft. He played in 47 career games.

According to PFF, Newsome had 20 solo tackles so far this season, the 15th best of any corner this year. He allowed just 15 catches so far this season, the 28th best in the league, and was graded as the 59th best corner in the league.

While those stats aren’t mind-boggling, context is an important piece of the puzzle here. Newsome played opposite Denzel Ward, one of the best and most respected corners in the NFL. The Browns defensive scheme keeps the boundary corners stationary, guarding the left or right side of the field, rather than traveling with the best receiver.

That means the Browns allow the offense to dictate the matchup, believing either corner would win if needed. When a team has their best receiver lined up against Newsome, they won’t even look towards Ward’s side of the field.

Inherently, Newsome is going to be on the wrong side of some plays. Considering those circumstances, he remained one of the staples of this Browns defense. The defense was off to an incredible start of the season, and will likely take a hit while Campbell adjusts.

Losing a guy like that can really hurt a team’s morale, especially when you remember the reason the Browns don’t have the money to pay him is because of a quarterback who is getting paid $230 million fully guaranteed.

Ownership really has to be careful not to lose the locker room, having barely kept Myles Garrett this offseason after some drama, and this seems like a step in the wrong direction.

Campbell on the other hand is ranked as the 109th best corner based on PFF. Campbell has logged more tackles this season than Newsome, but on 40 more snaps. Campbell has also given up 19 catches this season.

The numbers are really comparable, but again, context is important. Campbell was the standout in a weak cornerback room.

Campbell will see his targets go up in Cleveland’s system. It’ll take time for Campbell to adjust, obviously, but the longer it takes, the more targets he’ll face. The Browns seemingly opened up a weakness that teams are sure to take advantage of over the next few weeks.

Looking into the future, Campbell is currently on a four-year deal worth $76.5 million that he signed back in July of 2024.

The Browns spent this offseason preparing Martin Emerson Jr. to play the boundary, leading to trade rumors regarding Newsome during the offseason. Emerson’s season came to an early end with an achilles tear. Emerson had a down year in 2024, and will have a difficult road to recovery to get back to his old form.

Now the Browns cornerback room for the future, who released Cameron Mitchell last week, consists of Ward, an unproven talent in Campbell, an injured Emerson and Myles Harden, who wasn’t expected to have to take a leap this season.

All of a sudden this feels like it went from one of the best pairing in the league to one of the Browns biggest question marks of the future. With so many issues around this team, it doesn’t feel like a win.

The move also doesn’t align with Ward’s belief that this team is trying to stay competitive this season. A major shift in one of the few pieces is a way for a bad season to fully hit rock bottom.

On top of all that, the Browns walked away with a worse pick in the draft, trading a sixth for a seventh.

The future isn’t set for Campbell. He could easily become a top corner, making Andrew Berry look like a genius. It just doesn’t feel like good timing for a defense that is already clicking, and trying to keep fans confident the team wants to win.