Browns Interested In Jermaine Kearse
The Browns are interested in Seahawks wide receiver Jermaine Kearse, a source tells Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. The Seahawks have him on the block as Saturday’s roster deadline approaches. 
[RELATED: Seahawks Shopping Jermaine Kearse]
Kearse is coming off of a down year and is set to enter the second year of a three-year, $13.5MM deal. He doesn’t hold as much appeal as he did this time last year, but the Browns could use someone with his experience level to round out their thin receiving corps. Free agent Kenny Britt and Corey Coleman will serve as the top two receivers, but converted running back Duke Johnson and late round 2016 picks Ricardo Louis and Rashard Higgins are the next ones in line.
So far this preseason, Coleman has been the Browns’ only reliable performer. Even Britt has looked shaky, and that has the Browns looking for outside help.
Brock Osweiler Could Be Next On Chopping Block
The odds of the Browns releasing quarterback Brock Osweiler and eating his fully guaranteed $16MM salary have seemingly increased in recent days, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk contends. Cleveland saved $15.25MM – nearly the sum of Osweiler’s salary – by releasing defensive lineman Desmond Bryant and cornerback Joe Haden in the past week-plus, which could make it easier to part with the QB now that he won’t be its starter, Florio posits. Osweiler is unlikely to garner any trade interest, so cutting the 26-year-old would enable the Browns to recoup a bit of his salary ($775K) if he signs elsewhere for the league minimum.
Chiefs Acquire Cameron Erving
The Browns have traded offensive lineman Cameron Erving to the Chiefs for a fifth-round pick in 2018, per Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Cleveland placed Erving on the block after he lost the starting right tackle job to second-year man Shon Coleman.
Erving goes down as a failed first-round pick for the Browns, who selected the former Florida State standout 19th overall in 2015. He was unable to establish himself either at tackle or along the interior of the line in Cleveland, which tried Erving at both guard and center. To his credit, the 25-year-old Erving has been durable to this point, having appeared in 29 of a possible 32 regular-season games. He started in all 13 of his appearances last season, though Pro Football Focus ranked him among the game’s worst centers.
For the Chiefs, who acquired another recent high pick – 2016 second-round linebacker Reggie Ragland – in a deal with the Bills earlier this week, Erving represents a talented reclamation project. If he breaks out over the next two seasons, the Chiefs will have the ability to control Erving through 2019 by way of a fifth-year option.
In the near term, playing time looks as if it will be difficult to come by for Erving in Kansas City. The Chiefs have five set starters along the line in tackles Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz, guards Laurent Duvernay-Tardif and Bryan Witzmann and center Mitch Morse, though injuries during the season should create opportunities for the team to plug in Erving.
Browns Release CB Joe Haden
The Browns have released veteran cornerback Joe Haden, the club announced today. Cleveland had been “aggressively” shopping Haden as of yesterday, but evidently wasn’t able to find a taker.
Cleveland’s efforts to trade Haden didn’t start only recently, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link), who indicates the team had been marketing Haden for more than year. But the 28-year-old Haden’s contract likely proved a hindrance, as he’s due $11.1MM in 2017 base salary, a figure that includes $4MM in guarantees. That guarantee didn’t kick in until February, tweets Jason Fitzgerald of Over the Cap, so the Browns could have parted ways with Haden before that time and saved that total. However, the club presumably was willing to take the risk of eating that $4MM in the hopes of finding a trade partner.
An acquiring team would have also taken on Haden’s base salaries over the next two seasons: $11.1MM in 2018 and $10.4MM in 2019, though none of that money would have been guaranteed. Haden’s signing bonus proration will now accelerate onto the Browns’ salary cap over the next two campaigns, meaning the club will take on $7.2MM in dead money in 2017 and $3.6MM in 2018. Cleveland attempted to convince Haden to accept a pay cut before releasing him, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk (Twitter link), but Haden declined.
Haden’s performance probably wasn’t overly appealing to potential suitors, either, as he’d struggled with both injuries and ineffectiveness over the past several seasons. He missed 14 games from 2015-16, and ranked as just the No. 88 cornerback among 110 qualifiers last year, per Pro Football Focus. Among the 84 qualified cornerbacks in Football Outsiders’ data, Haden finished only 64th in yards allowed per pass (8.2).
The Browns will move forward with free agent acquisition Jason McCourty and 2016 waiver claim Briean Boddy-Calhoun as their starting corners, with Jamar Taylor in the slot. Fourth-round rookie Howard Wilson is also available for depth, while Haden’s release likely opened up a roster spot for a corner such as Trey Caldwell or Marcus Burley to earn space on the squad. Cleveland, which owns the NFL’s No. 1 waiver priority, may also be active in poaching players from other teams during roster cutdowns this weekend.
Haden, for his part, shouldn’t have any trouble finding a new team in relatively short order, and the Saints and Chiefs are among the clubs expected to have “strong interest” in him, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link). New Orleans has inquired on Haden before, making a play for him prior to the 2016 trade deadline, but Cleveland’s asking price was reportedly too steep. The Cowboys, too, are eyeing Haden, but aren’t likely to get into a bidding war, per Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star Telegram (Twitter link). Haden’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, told Schefter there is “tons of interest” in his client, and predicted Haden will have a new contract by Thursday (Twitter link).
Browns Part With Two
Cleveland Browns
Browns Shopping Cameron Erving
The Browns are trying to trade offensive lineman Cameron Erving, a league source tells Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Erving, a former first-round pick, has lost the starting right tackle job to Shon Coleman, so he is too expensive for a backup role and therefore expendable.
[RELATED: Browns Aggressively Shopping Joe Haden]
Erving was competing for the No. 1 right tackle job before suffering a calf injury last week. Even though the battle was ostensibly close, Erving’s salary is significantly higher than that of Coleman, a third-round pick in the 2016 draft. If possible, the rebuilding Browns would like to take Erving’s salary off the books and get some draft capital in return.
The former Florida State standout is due to carry a cap hit of $2.571MM this year and $3MM in 2018. He has yet to put it all together at the NFL level, but he does offer versatility, including the ability to play center.
Erving isn’t the only Browns player on the block. The team is aggressively working to trade cornerback Joe Haden and quarterback Brock Osweiler is said to be available.
Browns Aggressively Shopping Joe Haden
Teams in need of a cornerback will want to answer the phone when they get calls from a Cleveland area code. The Browns are aggressively trying to trade Joe Haden, multiple teams tell Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). He adds that the Browns are “very motivated” to move his contract.
Haden is no stranger to trade rumors as the Browns explored moving him prior to last year’s trade deadline. The Saints were among the inquiring clubs, but the asking price was ultimately too rich for their blood.
Haden was limited to five games in 2015 but he gutted out a painful groin injury last year and appeared in 13 contests. The two-time Pro Bowler finished out with 48 tackles and three interceptions. For what it’s worth, the advanced metrics at Pro Football Focus only ranked him as the No. 88 corner in the league last year out of 110 qualified players. In his best years, Haden profiled as a Top 10-20 CB.
Plenty of teams would be happy to acquire Haden and see what he can offer, but his contract will be a stumbling block in talks. The 28-year-old is due to make $11.1MM this season and is under contract through 2019.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/28/17
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: LS Taybor Pepper
Chicago Bears
- Signed: LS Jeff Overbaugh
- Waived/injured: Patrick Scales
Cincinnati Bengals
- Waived: P Will Monday
Cleveland Browns
- Waived: OL Gabe Ikard
Denver Broncos
- Waived/injured: DL Jimmy Bean
Detroit Lions
- Released: WR Keshawn Martin, TE Tim Wright
Green Bay Packers
- Waived: LS Derek Hart, WR Colby Pearson, RB William Stanback
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: S Earl Wolff
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: LB Akeem Dent
- Waived from IR: CB Ezra Robinson
Kansas City Chiefs
- Released: LB Josh Mauga
Los Angeles Rams
- Waived: K Travis Coons
New England Patriots
- Signed: DL Michael Bart, LB Christian Kuntz, LB Nick Usher
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: LB Audie Cole
- Placed on IR: TE Clay Harbor
New York Giants
- Signed: DB Daniel Gray
- Placed on IR: OL Adam Gettis
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: DE Mehdi Abdesmad, DL Hendrick Ekpe
- Waived: RB Blake Sims
- Placed on IR: Justin Trattou
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/27/17
Today’s minor moves:
Cleveland Browns
- Placed on injured reserve: LB Tank Carder (torn ACL), OL Matt McCants
- Waived/injured: S Justin Currie
Detroit Lions
- Signed: DT Derrick Lott
- Placed on IR: DT Jordan Hill
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Waived from IR: CB Charles Gaines
New England Patriots
- Waived: DE Caleb Kidder
- Waived/injured: TE Matt Lengel
New York Giants
- Claimed off waviers: CB Tay Glover-Wright
- Waived from IR: DE Evan Schwan, WR Kevin Snead
New York Jets
- Waived/injured: DT Anthony Johnson
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: C Ruben Carter, WR Justin Thomas
- Waived/injured: CB Greg Ducre
Seattle Seahawks
- Waived from IR: TE Marcus Lucas
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Waived from IR: DB Maurice Fleming
Browns Eyeing Trade For Wide Receiver
The Browns are scouring the trade market for a wide receiver, according to Tony Grossi of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
While Cleveland boasts a clear starting combination of wideouts in Kenny Britt and Corey Coleman, the club’s depth chart beyond those top two is a bit sparse (and inexperienced), as the Browns’ other options include Ricardo Louis, Rashard Higgins, Mario Alford, and Jordan Payton. Running back Duke Johnson has also been working as a slot receiver.
When I examined the premier NFL trade candidates earlier this month, I listed two wide receivers: Phillip Dorsett (Colts) and Cody Latimer (Broncos). While neither player has posted much in the way of professional results, each would give the Browns a young pass-catcher at a position of need. Of course, both Dorsett and Latimer are entirely speculative acquisitions for Cleveland.
One wild card in the Browns’ search for a wide receiver is Josh Gordon, who hasn’t been played since 2014 while serving suspensions. Gordon is eligible to apply for reinstatement this fall, and has reportedly spent time in a rehab facility, perhaps buoying his chances of returning to the NFL.