Before the Seattle Seahawks made a blockbuster trade with the Denver Broncos, the Cleveland Browns made a run at acquiring quarterback Russell Wilson. However, Wilson’s no-trade clause ultimately prevented the Browns from landing him. According to KOA Colorado’s Benjamin Allbright, the Browns pursued Wilson on several occasions before he chose the Broncos over “multiple other teams.”
“Can confirm Browns made a play for Russ Wilson (not the first time) this off season, but was not interested in playing there,” Allbright tweeted on July 27. “Chose Broncos over multiple other teams.”
It is unclear exactly what the Browns offered the Seahawks, but it seems likely that a concrete proposal was ever made given Wilson’s unwillingness to sign off on playing for Cleveland. The Browns might have been able to offer a combination of draft picks and quarterback Baker Mayfield, but the Seahawks did not show eagerness to acquire the former No. 1 pick earlier this offseason. Mayfield eventually was traded to the Carolina Panthers on July 7 for a 2024 conditional fifth-round pick.
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Wilson Had His ‘Heart Set on a Few Teams’: Report
Wilson’s no-trade clause put the Seahawks in a challenging position to get true market value in a deal for the quarterback. The clause made it difficult for Seahawks general manager John Schneider to create a bidding war between teams for the nine-time Pro Bowler. According to Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot, Wilson was not willing to join the Browns and “had his heart set on a few teams.”
“Well, they did make some kind of a pitch for Russell Wilson,” Cabot explained during the July 26 episode of “The Orange and Brown Talk” podcast. “Russell Wilson was a player that they were interested in, but Russell was going to be able to dictate where he landed.
“I don’t know all of it, but I just don’t think that he had the Browns on his list as a place that he wanted to play. I think that he had his heart set on a few teams, and I don’t think [Cleveland] was one of them. So yeah, they might have been better off trying to land or landing a Russell Wilson [over Deshaun Watson]. I don’t think that they really had that option.”
The Seahawks Tried to Trade Wilson to the Browns in 2018: Report
One of the rumors that circulated even when Wilson was still the Seahawks QB1 is that Seattle and Cleveland also held trade talks in 2018. The Seahawks attempted to trade Wilson to the Browns for a package that would have included the No. 1 pick, per Allbright. Under this scenario, Seattle would have had the option of selecting Mayfield and additional quarterback options, including future superstars Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson.
“The Seahawks tried to trade Russ to the Browns for the number one overall pick several years prior, they had been trying to move on from Russell Wilson for some time,” Allbright tweeted on July 28. “Russ had certainly gotten frustrated and fed up over the last two [years].”
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Russell Wilson Vetoed Blockbuster Seahawks Trade to Contender: Report