News & views

News: J. J. Watt ends what seemed like endless speculation of his next destination by agreeing to contract terms (two years, $31 million) with the Arizona Cardinals Monday.

Views: Good. Glad the Browns didn't land him.

The abundantly talented but aging defensive end whose injury history precedes him is on the downward slope of his career. The Browns need to get younger. Watt does not fit that dynamic.

Many in Browns Nation would argue he would be the prefect complement to Myles Garrett. They were struck by the the star quality of Watt, a future Pro Football Hall of Famer who has become less of a dangerous edge rusher and more of a solid run stopper.

There is no question whatsoever the Browns need all kinds of help on defense. Watt was looking for a Super Bowl-contending team, one that could challenge immediately. The Browns aren't there yet. The Cardinals, on the other hand, have a much more balanced team.

While speculation centered on Green Bay, Tennessee, Pittsburgh and the Browns to a hopeful and yet foolish extent, the Cardinals sneaked in the back door. Why foolish? Because it would have meant overpaying for someone with a history of injuries. 

This new administration thus far has shown the ability to avoid making mistakes in the personnel department, especially on offense. They went cheap with the defense last season with what one believes was an eye on improving the other side of the football this time around.

Opening up the Haslam vault for Watt would have been a mistake. To borrow a phrase from the past . . , sometimes the best moves you make are the ones you don't make. 

If I'm going to hand out 15 mill a season to someone, I'd much rather give it to someone like Yannick Ngakoue, who made stops in Minnesota and Baltimore last season after talking his way out of Jacksonville.

I lobbied for the Browns to trade for Ngakoue last offseason. The club reportedly tried, but was unwilling to part with second-round and conditional fifth-round picks the Vikings offered. Two months later, the Ravens gave the Vikings a third-rounder for him.

The soon-to-be 26-year-old is on the small side at 6-2, 255 pounds, but he makes plays. In his first five National Football League seasons, he has recorded 45 sacks and forced 18 fumbles. Another possibility is Leonard Williams, who had a bust-out season in 2020 with 11.5 sacks with the New York Giants after posting 17.5 in his first five seasons. That is the kind of production the Browns need up front.

Watt is no longer in the upside category with regard to the future. Ngakoue is. So is Williams. Time to make a move in that direction.

News: Speculation ramps up that Odell Beckham Jr. might be wearing a different uniform next season.

Views: Predicting where Beckham will play nest season has become somewhat of a sport. The Browns say they want him back. Of course that's what they would say. It's also what they should say from a public relations standpoint. Don't create a story where there isn't one. Yet.

That doesn't mean it's all quiet in the OBJ front. While he diligently rehabs from his torn ACL midway through last season, rumors continue to swirl with pundits trying to put two and two together and suggest several landing spots. 

They will continue, most likely because they don't believe the Browns' will sit tight, especially after the way they played last season with OBJ a spectator. It's difficult to believe Beckham makes this offense better than it was the last 11 games.

With a wealth of young receivers -- they'll probably select at least one in the April college draft -- and a running game that pretty much embodies and defines Kevin Stefanski's offensive philosophy, it is not out of the question to assume Beckham will become an ex-Brown sooner rather than later.

There seems to be no question he and Baker Mayfield have had difficulties winding up on the same page the last two seasons, Mayfield, at least statistically, is clearly a better quarterback when Beckham is not involved in the play.

But because he has not been the productive receiver they expected when dealing for him, the Browns cannot expect anything more than a third-round pick, maybe a conditional second-rounder, in return if they choose to go that route.

News: More receiver news: Rashard Higgins wants to come back.

Views: There is no reason the Browns should hesitate to reward the young veteran, who has been clutch for Mayfield except when he found coach Freddie Kitchens' doghouse throughout most of the 2019 season. He wants to stay. Give him a good reason to not test the free-agent market.

To give you an idea of his worth, compare Higgins' contributions with Mayfield the last three seasons against those of Jarvis Landry. It's enlightening.                  

Higgins has caught 69% of his 116 targets in that span for 1,226 yards and nine touchdowns. Jarvis has latched on to his 388 targets 61% of the time for 2,990 yards and 13 touchdowns. One was a starter; the other a part-time contributor. 

Pay the man.