Browns Trade Proposal Sends Linebacker to NFC North Squad

Getty Images Ronnie Harrison Jr. and Mack Wilson of the Cleveland Browns.

The Cleveland Browns have assembled a wealth of talent on the defensive side of the ball, which has put a few players on the hot seat when it comes to roster spots.

One of those players is linebacker Mack Wilson, who has started 22 games over the last two seasons but is now buried on the depth chart behind a mix of veterans and rookies.

So with Wilson unlikely to make the final 53-man roster, the Browns could choose to deal him. Bleacher Report NFL analyst Brent Sobleski proposed a hypothetical trade that would send Wilson to the Detroit Lions, a move that would likely fetch a late-round pick.

As Sobleski points out, former Browns general manager John Dorsey is the Lions’ senior personnel executive. Dorsey drafted Wilson and could still see some potential upside in the former Alabama linebacker. Sobleski wrote:

Cleveland now has Anthony Walker, whom it signed in free agency, and rookie second-round pick Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah projected as its starting linebackers. Sione Takitaki is a quality part-time performer at SAM backer. Behind them, the unit can lean on long-time veteran Malcolm Smith and Jacob Phillips, who could win the starting job over the rookie. Plus, fifth-round rookie Tony Fields II will be thrown into the mix.

Mack Wilson Needs Big Camp to Stay With Browns

GettyBrowns linebacker Mack Wilson.

Wilson initially looked like a steal as a fifth-round pick in 2019. He took over a starting role for the majority of the year, notching 77 tackles, one interception, a forced fumble, four tackles for loss and seven passes defensed.

But his second season started out rocky, with a hyperextended knee during training camp that was thought to be season-ending at one point. When he did get on the field, it wasn’t pretty. He played in 13 games with eight starts, recording just 39 tackles.

In the July 28 Browns 53-man roster projection by ESPN’s Jake Trotter, Wilson is not among the six linebackers Cleveland keeps going into the season. Trotter notes that Wilson will have to have a “big camp” to stick around.

It’s not the first time Trotter has pointed out Wilson as a possible cut candidate; he also singled Wilson out in a July 6 article: “Wilson can still carve out an important role in the linebacking rotation, but to do that, he’ll have to play better than he did last season.”

Browns Shorthanded at LB to Open Training Camp

One thing that might be working in Wilson’s favor is that the Browns are shorthanded at linebacker for the start of training camp. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah is currently on the COVID-19 list and Tony Fields is dealing with his second foot injury.

In a conference with local media before training camp practice on July 28, head coach Kevin Stefanski said Owusu-Koramoah missing the start of camp was less than ideal.

“I am sure he wants to be out here, and we want him out here, but that is the nature of this thing,” Stefanski said. “We will just bring him along as quickly as we can while he is not here.”

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