Could Jacoby Brissett Be a Trade Target for Browns Due to Cardinals Holdout?

With the Cleveland Browns entrenched in an open quarterback competition, it’s safe to say it’s been an eventful offseason at the position.

Many assumed the starting job would automatically default to second-year passer Shedeur Sanders after the way he closed out last season, but Deshaun Watson’s career got an unexpected shot in the arm and now he’s been recently reported as the frontrunner to start the season for the Browns’ offense.

Now, an unexpected holdout on another team could potentially make things even more interesting for the Browns, if they’re interested in a comeback. Jacoby Brissett, who played for the team in 2022, is a no-show at the Arizona Cardinals’ OTAs, where he’s reportedly looking for a raise and an extra year or two on his expiring deal. Could Brissett suddenly become a trade target for Cleveland?

Brissett already started 11 games for the Browns back in 2022, while Watson was serving a league-imposed suspension, going 4-7 to open the season.

Could a trade for Jacoby Brissett benefit the Browns?

On the surface, no, not really. Over the span of a decade in the league, he has a 20-45 career record and is coming off a 1-11 season in Arizona, who he’s trying to force into extending him.

Even a straight up trade for Dillon Gabriel -- who could really use a change of scenery -- does little in Cleveland. Brissett won’t beat out Watson and Sanders, and his cost is higher than Gabriel’s, who might be getting cut anyway.

However, there is one scenario where he could end up clarifying the Browns’ blurry picture at quarterback: what if Brissett is actually traded for Watson?

That’s a huge if, granted, but it could offer a way out for both franchises. Watson is still owed a boatload of money for this year, and his deal contains four more void years. Assuming the Browns don’t extend him at seasons’ end -- and why would they? -- his cap hits for the other four years will accelerate into two charges, $34.6 million for 2027 and $51.6 million for 2028. That’s on top of the $46 million hit for this year.

So, what would be needed for this trade to work?

First off, Arizona would have to be willing to take on Watson’s $46 million guaranteed, which it could then spread out in the form of an extension, something Watson won’t get in Cleveland.

Watson would have to be willing to move to Arizona, not just because of his no-trade clause, but because he'd most likely have to take a pay cut for this season from those $46 million guaranteed, while adding maybe a couple of years for the Cardinals. Would he take Sam Darnold-level money ($33.5 million per year average) over three seasons, instead of the whole $46 million now, to become the undisputed starter in Arizona? There’s no competition there.

On his part, Brissett would have to want to return to Cleveland in a backup role to Sanders. The Browns would likely have to offer him an extension to further his current deal, which calls for $5 million in 2026. Brissett is already looking for an extension, and a Marcus Mariota type contract averaging around $7 million a year for a backup doesn’t sound too harsh. The biggest obstacle here would be convincing Brissett to be a backup, which is where he's most likely already headed. Arizona picked Carson Beck in the third round, and he should see some playing time as a rookie. If he falters, then the Cardinals will almost certainly be picking a quarterback very high in the 2027 NFL Draft.

The biggest if, however, would be Cleveland. Maybe taking Watson out of the equation actually helps Sanders find his footing as the team’s undisputed starter. Maybe not seeing Watson around brings some sort of closure to the franchise, while avoiding falling further into the sunk cost fallacy.

But trading Watson means the team loses the ability to split his remaining cap hit over the 2027 and 2028 seasons, as it would all accelerate to next season. If Cleveland were at any point comfortable taking on an $86 million dead cap hit, they surely would have moved on from Watson already. That’s the price to pay for all the contract restructuring over the years.

I’m sure most Browns’ fans would rather have Brissett than Watson on the roster, but the numbers just don’t make sense. Barring an unexpected change of heart regarding the $86 million dead cap hit -- something that cannot be totally dismissed -- Watson will play out his fifth and final year for Cleveland, likely as a starter.

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