The Cleveland Browns are almost certainly going to be sellers at the trade deadline, but how hard they go in terms of giving up key players remains to be seen.
The Browns are in the midst of a rebuild and need to add more valuable draft capital before the trade deadline passes on Nov. 4.
However, it would appear general manager Andrew Berry is hesitant to give up the pieces he needs to in order to make that happen.
According to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, while the Browns are expected to make more trades (they have already pulled off three), the team plans to hold on to key players, like tight end David Njoku, for example.
That said, she does add that the Browns weren't expected to trade either quarterback Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals or cornerback Greg Newsome to the Jacksonville Jaguars before they ultimately did, so there's that, also.
"The Browns will likely make more trades, but are not looking to sell off key players such as TE David Njoku (But they also didn't plan to trade Joe Flacco or Greg Newsome II)," Kay Cabot reported.
It definitely makes sense to trade Njoku, who is 29 and in the final year of his deal. But, on the flip side, the Browns might want to keep him around to help in the development of rookie signal-caller Dillon Gabriel.
If the Browns want to seriously improve their stable of 2026 picks, parting ways with some high-profile players like Njoku would be the best way to go about it. Obviously, a reluctance to do so will hurt their ability to accomplish that feat.
One name you're going to hear a lot in the coming weeks is running back Jerome Ford, who is going to draw interest from running back-needy teams. ESPN's Jeremy Fowler mentioned Ford as a trade candidate.
"It's a rookie show in Cleveland. Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson will man the backfield moving forward," he explained. "The Browns have remained active in the market with three trades executed in recent weeks. And Ford has enough cachet in the league -- with 1,378 rushing yards and seven touchdowns over 2023-24 -- to attract interest."
Ford still has a fairly sizeable role in the offense, but the Browns need to clear the path for rookie Dylan Sampson to get more work behind Quinshon Judkins. Ford's expiring contract is another reason to move him.
Even if the Browns do trade Ford, he isn't likely to garner more than a late-Day 3 pick. Not exactly the significant draft capital the Browns need.
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