He fell out of favor under the previous regime, as he was a regular healthy scratch down the stretch after returning from IR after a wrist injury. Had coach Freddie Kitchens and general manager John Dorsey been retained, Njoku almost certainly would have been out the door. Still, while Njoku would have a fresh start under a new coach and front office, it's clear he was also losing the trust of QB Baker Mayfield. That's why the 2017 first-round selection might be better off attempting to resuscitate his career elsewhere -- especially if the Browns can get something that can help them in return. -- Jake Trotter"
With our poor draft position maybe a 3rd round pick?
Well we don't have a 3rd or 4th picks this year. Anyway I wouldn't trade anymore than a 5th for the guy. He only has one year left on his rookie contract, and there may be some injury or attitude issues. Of course I would have am attitude playing for the Browns as well.
Not a bad idea... it might only take a 4th/5th rounder to get him, too.
Here's a better idea:
Rather than spending a 3rd/4th/5th round pick on a player who's been a disappointment and has only 1 year left before becoming a FA, how about we just spend that pick on drafting our own and having him for 4 years?
Not a bad idea... it might only take a 4th/5th rounder to get him, too.
Here's a better idea:
Rather than spending a 3rd/4th/5th round pick on a player who's been a disappointment and has only 1 year left before becoming a FA, how about we just spend that pick on drafting our own and having him for 4 years?
HARD PASS
In any other offseason I might be down w/taking a shot at a guy like this b/c sometimes it's just a matter of a change of scenery. But w/2 failed experiments at the top of your roster, and w/limited picks I don't think you can afford to do this, so I agree w/MP here.
With our poor draft position maybe a 3rd round pick?
Well we don't have a 3rd or 4th picks this year. Anyway I wouldn't trade anymore than a 5th for the guy. He only has one year left on his rookie contract, and there may be some injury or attitude issues. Of course I would have am attitude playing for the Browns as well.
Thanks - thought for some reason we had a third, but I’m having too many senior moments of late. 🤣 The Browns were a mess last season and an attitude concern is definitely something to be concerned with.
Rather than spending a 3rd/4th/5th round pick on a player who's been a disappointment and has only 1 year left before becoming a FA, how about we just spend that pick on drafting our own and having him for 4 years?
HARD PASS
In any other offseason I might be down w/taking a shot at a guy like this b/c sometimes it's just a matter of a change of scenery. But w/2 failed experiments at the top of your roster, and w/limited picks I don't think you can afford to do this, so I agree w/MP here.
Given the epic fail we had at the position in 2019, I know everyone has a raging boner for any TE anywhere that caught a few passes last season but let's be smart and unemotional about this.
The Bears already have one high-priced FA TE with injury/production problems on the team (Burton), they don't need another. They also already have one high-draft-pick bust TE on the team (Shaheen), they certainly don't need someone's else's too (Njoku, Ebron, etc.)
Pace just needs to calm down and make a solid mid-round TE draft pick while getting Burton fully healthy again. That's it. Let's not squander money chasing other teams' crap TEs.
In any other offseason I might be down w/taking a shot at a guy like this b/c sometimes it's just a matter of a change of scenery. But w/2 failed experiments at the top of your roster, and w/limited picks I don't think you can afford to do this, so I agree w/MP here.
Given the epic fail we had at the position in 2019, I know everyone has a raging boner for any TE anywhere that caught a few passes last season but let's be smart and unemotional about this.
The Bears already have one high-priced FA TE with injury/production problems on the team (Burton), they don't need another. They also already have one high-draft-pick bust TE on the team (Shaheen), they certainly don't need someone's else's too (Njoku, Ebron, etc.)
Pace just needs to calm down and make a solid mid-round TE draft pick while getting Burton fully healthy again. That's it. Let's not squander money chasing other teams' crap TEs.
Going over the free agent list, you do see players that are hard to get excited about. There are reasons why their teams let them walk. Obviously every player situation is different, and you have to have FAs on your team and can't just build through the draft. But it's like paying full retail when you "buy" a player that way, and sometimes it's buying damaged goods also. I'm not against bringing in a veteran TE or any other position. Ideally though you draft better than Shaheen and don't have this problem to begin with. For example when Pace drafted Shaheen he passed over George Kittle. He drafted Trubisky and passed over Patrick Mahomes, and spent extra draft picks to do that. I get it that every team misses in the draft. No team is perfect by any means. But Pace does have his share of misses in those first two rounds. Thankfully he has had some great hits in the mid to late rounds. That sure helps.
For years I've noticed (often) that FAs that are going to be pricey are mid to late round draft picks that now command serious money to "buy" on the open market. Best scenario is to draft these kind of guys ourselves rather than Shaheen types.