Getty Mike Evans, Buccaneers WR who was discussed on the day of the NFL trade deadline.
There are a handful of roster holes the Cleveland Browns could prioritize in free agency, though finding a wide receiver to partner with Amari Cooper is perhaps the most urgent.
The franchise bet $230 million on Deshaun Watson and after two years, that wager is clearly a loss. The best way to turn it into a win is to get the quarterback healthy, then get him another serious playmaking threat to create a three-headed monster in the pass game alongside Cooper and Pro Bowl tight end David Njoku.
Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com made a passionate case for the Browns to pursue Mike Evans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers should he become available. Evans will hit free agency on March 13 if the Bucs don’t extend or franchise tag him before then.
“I would go out and I would break the bank for a Mike Evans or a Tee Higgins or another big-name, big-game wide receiver,” Cabot said. “I don’t necessarily think that they feel that way, but I certainly feel that way.”
Cabot added that she believes the team should have signed DeAndre Hopkins last year and advocated making a trade for a wideout if the Browns are unable to find the right player in free agency.
“I think they need to go for it in the wide receiver department, either make a trade or sign one of the receivers that might come available,” Cabot continued. “Now these guys might not hit the market. Maybe Mike Evans hits the market, maybe he doesn’t. … I would do whatever I can to get one of these types of wide receivers.”
Mike Evans Has Hall of Fame Resumé, Brings 1 Major Concern With Him Into Free Agency
GettyWide receiver Mike Evans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
While every casual NFL fan knows who Evans is, he remains relatively low key for a player who is already a Hall of Fame lock at the age of 30.
Evans earned his fifth Pro Bowl nod in 2023, which was his 10th professional season. In all 10 of those campaigns, the wideout has never failed to eclipse 1,000 yards receiving. Evans led the league in receiving touchdowns last year with 13 and earned second-team All-Pro honors for the second time in his career.
Beyond leading an offensive attack on a perennial playoff team for the past four seasons and winning a Super Bowl ring following the 2020 campaign, Evans has amassed 762 receptions for 11,680 yards and 94 TDs over the course of his career, per Pro Football Reference.
The two potential knocks on Evans as a free agent candidate in Cleveland are his age, and that age combined with his earning potential.
The former first-round pick (No. 7 overall in the 2014 NFL draft) will turn 31 years a few weeks before the 2024 season kicks off. He just played out a five-year contract worth $82.5 million in total, and Spotrac projects his market value at $95.3 million over a new four-year deal (roughly $23.8 million annually).
Evans has been incredibly reliable from a health standpoint, missing only nine regular-season games across 10 NFL seasons. That said, investing that heavily in a player through his mid-30s isn’t ideal, so the Browns should consider younger options as well — assuming they have the right ones.
Tee Higgins No Longer Available to Browns After Bengals Use Franchise Tag
GettyWide receiver Tee Higgins will remain with the Cincinnati Bengals in 2024 via the franchise tag.
Cabot also mentioned Higgins, of the Cincinnati Bengals, who is far less accomplished than Evans but considerably younger.
Higgins, however, is no longer an option for Cleveland as of Saturday. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that the Bengals will use the franchise tag to keep Higgins on the roster in 2024 at the price of $21.8 million.
The move reduces the Browns’ options in free agency for another big-game receiver by one and is sure to come as a blow to Watson, who openly recruited Higgins to Cleveland earlier this offseason.
“You know what’s up with us man. I know you are down to roll. We want to pass the ball and are going to pass it a lot,” Watson said in a message to Higgins on the January 26 edition of his “QB Unplugged” podcast. “We are going to take care of you. The Cleveland fans will love you to death and we have the Clemson ties. We didn’t get to play with each other, but this is our opportunity. Come on over to The Land.”
Browns Should Look for WR With Profile Similar to Tee Higgins to Pair With Amari Cooper
GettyCleveland Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper.
Dan Labbe, a reporter for Cleveland.com who joined Cabot for the discussion about Browns and free agent receivers on Thursday, used Higgins as a model of the type of player for whom general manager Andrew Berry might uncharacteristically break the bank.
“Would the Browns go out and pay $20-25 million a year for a guy like Tee Higgins? I could also talk myself into it, because … we know how these contracts are structured. it’s not gonna carry a big cap hit for a couple years,” Labbe said two days before Cincinnati franchised Higgins, removing him from the chess board. “So you could have Amari Cooper and Tee Higgins … and then when it’s time to move on from Amari, you’d have a Tee Higgins who’s just entering the prime of his career. It makes sense.”
Higgins won’t be that player, but the logic behind Labbe’s arguments still stands. And as Cabot mentioned, the Browns don’t necessarily need to sign another wideout in free agency. A trade is a possibility as well.
As such, if the Browns front office is thinking at all like some of the reporters who cover the team as closely as anyone locally or nationally, there could be fireworks in the receiver room in Cleveland sooner than later.