David Njoku Wants Out of Cleveland, Tells Browns He Wants to Be Traded
The NFL season is still planning to forward with the regular season on September 10. After getting through the first stages of their offseason without any issues other than moving the draft from Las Vegas to a virtual platform, things have hit some bumps of late. The league canceled the Hall of Fame Game and the 2020 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony this year, set for the first weekend of August. Since that point, there has been talk about trimming the preseason to two games instead of four, giving players more time to reacclimate for the regular season grind. The NFLPA has countered, saying that they don’t want to have any preseason games. Neither adjustment has been officially announced at this point.
One thing that we do know on the transaction front is that there is at least one fairly prominent name that wants out of their current location and in a hurry.
David Njoku, who was a first-round selection of the Cleveland Browns in 2017, has informed the team that he wants to be dealt, preferably by the start of training camp later this month. Njoku had posted some solid numbers in his first two seasons with the team after being drafted. As a rookie in 2017, he hauled in 32 receptions on 60 targets for 386 yards and four touchdowns. His sophomore campaign was a breakout year as he caught 56 balls on 88 targets for 639 yards plus four scores. With the additions of Kareem Hunt and Odell Beckham Jr. to an offense that already featured Baker Mayfield, Nick Chubb and Jarvis Landry, the Cleveland offense seemed primed to roll.
Instead, things were a disaster for the most part. The Browns were 22nd in scoring offense with 20.9 points per game, putting up 15 points or less six times over the course of the season. While Chubb delivered on the ground with 1,494 yards and eight scores on the ground, other guys failed to deliver. Beckham Jr. struggled to get 74 catches for 1,035 yards and four scores. Mayfield completed only 59.4 percent of his throws for 3,827 yards with nearly as many interceptions (21) as touchdowns (22) on the year, while getting sacked 40 times. As for Njoku, it was a lost season for him as well. He suffered a concussion and a broken wrist in week two and barely played the rest of the season. Overall, he played in just four games, catching five passes on 10 targets for 41 yards and a score.
In the offseason, the Browns made a concerted effort to bolster the position. Cleveland added former Atlanta tight end Austin Hooper, who reeled in 75 passes for 787 yards and six scores on 97 targets last year, on a four-year deal worth $44 million with $23 million guaranteed. Then, in the NFL Draft, the Browns picked up Harrison Bryant from Florida Atlantic in the fourth round. He caught 65 passes for 1,004 yards and seven scores last season and won the John Mackey Award for the nation’s top tight end in the process. Njoku saw the writing on the wall about his playing time being cut and made the declaration he wanted out through his agent Drew Rosenhaus. Rosenhaus told Adam Schefter about the situation: "It is in David's best interest to find a new team at this time.”
Cleveland has already picked up Njoku’s fifth-year option at a price tag of $6.4 million, so if he’s dealt, the team that acquires him would have two years of control before having to make a decision. Njoku likely is trying to secure his own financial future by asking for a trade instead of getting a limited number of reps. While head coach Kevin Stefanski said he can envision all three guys being part of the offense, one has to think that was more lip service than anything. With Chubb, Landry and Beckham Jr. occupying the top of the offensive totem pole, the tight end is likely the fourth option at best in the system as far as touches. Trying to split those three ways wouldn’t lead to much in the way of production for two of that trio more than likely.
Reports say that the return on a Njoku trade is likely in the fourth or fifth-round range as far as draft picks go. Will the Browns give up on a former first-rounder for that price? It’s hard to say but the fact remains that Njoku wants a chance to prove himself and the Dawg Pound clearly isn’t the place for him to do so.
