The Cleveland Browns completely altered their future in 2022 with one move. After their saga with Baker Mayfield, the Browns secured who they thought would be their franchise quarterback by trading for Deshaun Watson. Despite the sexual assault allegations and his previous injuries, Cleveland believed that Watson was their guy.
That move has nearly single-handedly derailed the Browns’ future. During that time period, Watson has missed time due to injury and the 11-game suspension for his misconduct. Last season, the Browns quarterback suffered an Achilles tear that ended his campaign prematurely. That, coupled with his poor performance when he was on the field, has brought into question why Cleveland made that trade in the first place.
Former Browns chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta was recently asked about the Watson trade. Even though he took a new role as the Colorado Rockies’ president of baseball operations, DePodesta couldn’t avoid the now-infamous trade. The former Browns executive took responsibility for the organization’s decision.
“Those are organizational decisions,” DePodesta said, per ESPN. “Those are done collaboratively, a lot of people on board, and if you’re a senior leader of that organization at that time, then you own that decision. It’s the way I feel about almost all the decisions we made there in Cleveland. I absolutely own them all.”
The Watson trade has blown up in Cleveland’s face in more ways than one. The Browns quarterback has played in just 19 games through three seasons, sporting a dreadful 61.2% completion rate and amassing just 3,365 yards. He’s thrown 19 touchdowns to 12 interceptions as he struggled with injuries, even before tearing his Achilles. Watson is gearing up towards a return this season, but given Cleveland’s current standings, that might not be a wise decision.
To add insult to injury, the Browns’ previous franchise quarterback, Baker Mayfield, is currently thriving in Tampa Bay. Cleveland’s laundry list of quarterback failures just continue to pile up, and now they have an issue on their hands as they look to try and build some sort of a cohesive team.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are scouring the NFL to improve their own roster before this year’s trade deadline. The organization has multiple areas to upgrade if they can, but there is one position being discussed that makes no sense to prioritize.
Recently, one NFL analyst named the middle linebacker position as the number one pre-deadline need for the Steelers. NFL.com writer and analyst Kevin Patra laid out each team’s biggest deadline needs, and he explained his reason for why the MLB group is the one to focus on.
“Aside from Payton Wilson’s stellar appearance in Dublin, he has struggled in coverage, with his passer rating allowed as the nearest defender (130.4) counting as the sixth-highest among linebackers with 100-plus coverage snaps this season, per Next Gen Stats,” Patra writes. ”We’re not yet at the panic point with the Steelers defense, coming off a six-sack performance against the Vikings, but as of now, I lean toward Pittsburgh adding on defense over continuing to seek WR2s.”
Patra is absolutely correct in pointing out the issue with the pass coverage. Through the first four games, that group and the entire defense are susceptible to big plays.
What he neglects to consider is that the help the Steelers are seeking is already on the roster and the plan is already in motion. Cole Holcomb has become a steadier piece of the team’s middle linebacker rotation, coming in on expected rushing situations and spelling Payton Wilson. Holcomb is no better in pass coverage, but he is an excellent downhill tackler. He showed that immediately, forcing a fumble during the first defensive series he started in Week 3.
What his return and emergence has done is allow the Steelers to focus Wilson’s snaps on more obvious passing situations. His speed in coverage is his biggest asset, and being able to split time with Holcomb can allow him to keep his energy levels up when he’s needed.
The other issue present is that there is no immediate upgrade in pass coverage available. Could the Steelers use more depth and assistance? Absolutely. But are there any viable options that wouldn’t cost considerable assets? That is the million dollar question for Steelers general manager Omar Khan as he navigates the remaining weeks before the deadline.
Between the thin market and the options in-house, the Steelers don’t need to invest further in adding another middle linebacker. The trio they have is plenty to push this team through the rest of the season.