Browns urged by ESPN to make trade QB help in what would be a disastrous move originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The 2026 season for the Cleveland Browns, through eight weeks, has been a resounding success. They sit at 5-3, and while there is undeniably still a question about the future of the quarterback position, this has been a great start to the year.
Advertisement
But for the Browns’ trade deadline plans, they really shouldn’t be looking to spend meaningful assets to try and win this season. They should still look towards the future, as even though they could make the playoffs, the Browns aren’t real contenders.
However, ESPN’s Seth Walder is urging the Browns to make a baffling trade that would be a disaster. That trade idea? A big move to acquire Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins with the hope of improving the QB position for a playoff run this year.
“Who should they target? Raiders QB Kirk Cousins,” Walder writes. “The Browns are in an unexpectedly strong position with an actual chance to make the playoffs.”
Advertisement
The Browns are indeed in position to make a push to earn a playoff spot with Watson as the team’s starting quarterback. He’s not been great, but he’s done enough to keep the Browns in games and lead them to a 5-3 record.
But Walder made the case for the Browns to trade for Cousins to improve their odds of making a playoff run. “He would be a temporary solution at quarterback, but that’s better than trying to get to the postseason with Watson at QB,” Walder writes.
Sure, the Browns could acquire Cousins to drastically improve their QB play this season in hopes of making a real playoff push. But to do so, it’d cost them a bit to make that trade.
MORE: 4 stats that show how bad Chargers’ Justin Herbert has been in 2026
Advertisement
The Raiders don’t have to trade Cousins, and they would likely ask for meaningful compensation to give up Cousins. For the Browns, a team trying to rebuild, that kind of trade wouldn’t make sense at all.
Even if they traded for Cousins, his addition isn’t going to make this team a Super Bowl contender. Cousins is a rental QB; why would the Browns ever consider adding him in a trade? It would make no sense.
The Browns shouldn’t consider a QB addition, and instead should be open to trading away a QB like Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders.
Walder urging the Browns to trade for Cousins would be a horrible idea. There is no scenario in which this kind of move would be a net positive for the Browns, barring a miraculous Super Bowl run, which is very unlikely.
Advertisement
