The Cleveland Browns have often “won the offseason,” as they did again this year, but their moves have rarely led to sustained success. NFL free agency is not for building a roster; instead it is about supplementing what a team has already established. Too often, the Browns have tried to take shortcuts via free agency, forgetting that there is often a reason a player is allowed to enter free agency in the first place.
There are a lot of disappointing moves made in the last 10 years of Cleveland’s
free agency; these three stick out as among the worst:
Hooper earned multiple Pro Bowl selections with the Falcons before joining the Browns. His four-year, $42 million contract ultimately didn’t work out as planned. He was expected to be a star in Kevin Stefanski’s offense, yet he had only 780 receiving yards and seven touchdowns throughout the course of his two seasons before he was released. The dropped passes were frustrating for fans and left a bad taste for his time with this team.
The move to bring in Thornhill seemed like a great fit for the Cleveland defense at the time. After a disappointing stint from John Johnson III, fans were hopeful that Thornhill could come in and really make a difference. Between injuries and what may have been a poor fit, he never got settled with the Browns and was released with one year left on his contract.
Cleveland signed Britt in 2017 after he had an impressive 1,000-yard season with the Los Angeles Rams. There was a lot of excitement about the move, with many expecting him to become a focal point of the Browns’ passing offense. He ended up with just 18 receptions for 233 yards and was released from the team halfway through the season.
Let me know what you think in the comments – Who are the most disappointing Browns free agent signings of the last 10 years?
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