A few months ago, Brian Thomas Jr. could have looked like a natural Browns trade target. Now, that idea reads a lot differently.
Cleveland’s receiving room has changed fast, and Thomas no longer fits the picture. The Jacksonville wideout still has the pedigree of a big-time player, but his production has swung sharply since his rookie breakout in 2024. That season, he caught 87 passes for 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns, earned a Pro Bowl selection and finished fourth in AP Offensive Rookie of the Year voting.
Since then, though, the usage and the numbers have both fallen off. Thomas’ role shrank after Liam Coen moved from offensive coordinator to head coach last year, and his stat line followed suit with only 48 receptions for 707 yards and two touchdowns. Parker Washington’s role grew significantly in the same stretch.
This season hasn’t brought the rebound Jacksonville needed from Thomas, either. He’s currently behind Washington and Jakobi Meyers in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, and he has one fewer score than rookie sixth-rounder Josh Cameron, whom the team appears to like a lot. Brenton Strange has also been more involved in the offense.
The snap count tells a similar story. Thomas played 80 percent of offensive snaps as a rookie and 78 percent in his second season, but that number has dropped to 47 percent now.
That kind of profile would be a tough sell for Cleveland anyway, and the Browns have an even bigger reason to stay away: drops. After Jerry Jeudy’s deeply disappointing 2025 season, they do not need another receiver with ball-security problems.
The Browns also have far bigger reasons to feel good about where their passing game is headed. Second-round pick Denzel Boston has been the early favorite for Offensive Rookie of the Year, while first-rounder KC Concepcion has been nearly as productive. The two have helped revive the room to the point that Jeudy has become something of an afterthought, and there’s even been talk about whether he should be traded too.
Add in tight end Harold Fannin Jr. and the expected growth of Isaiah Bond, and Cleveland suddenly looks stocked with young pass-catching talent. Six months ago, the Browns had no clear answer at WR1. After the 2026 NFL Draft, they came away with two strong candidates.
That’s part of why another receiver chatter piece, Marvin Harrison Jr., also feels more theoretical than realistic for Cleveland. Harrison is being shopped in Arizona, according to multiple reports, and while his NFL production has been even quieter than Thomas’ so far, his upside is still viewed as much higher.
Harrison is seen as a more complete wideout with a fuller skill set, while Thomas is now mostly labeled a deep threat who can create space for teammates underneath. Even so, the Browns should not be expected to jump into the Harrison market. A swap involving Harrison and Jeudy might make sense on paper for this roster, but Cleveland would be wise not to get caught in a bidding war for a player it does not really need.
The bigger point is simple: the Browns have a young core that looks worth protecting, especially with a future quarterback still likely to require draft capital. Spending heavily on Thomas or Harrison would work against that.
If Cleveland makes a move before the trade deadline, the more logical targets are elsewhere - the offensive backfield, the defensive line or the defensive backfield. Wide receiver no longer looks like a hole.
In Other News...
Deshaun Watson Just Gave The Browns Another Unwanted Distraction
The Browns were handed another bit of off-field clutter this week when the NFL fined Deshaun Watson and Quinshon Judkins for an illegal celebration during the game against the Steelers. The gesture, which involved pretending to smoke, drew unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties and added one more item to a season already full of noise around Cleveland.
Watson was fined $14,926 and Judkins $14,397, with the leagues decision coming before the Browns Week 5 matchup against the Jets. It is the kind of small but avoidable distraction Cleveland would rather do without, especially when every week seems to bring a fresh reminder that discipline issues can quickly become part of the larger conversation around this team. [Read more 🡒]
Todd Monken Just Hit A Nerve With Browns Fans Over Minkah Fitzpatrick
Todd Monkens latest comments landed in a part of Cleveland that still hasnt cooled off. The Browns first-time head coach was asked about the high helmet-to-helmet hit Minkah Fitzpatrick delivered on rookie KC Concepcion during the recent game against the New York Jets, and Monken called it a bang-bang play while saying Fitzpatrick is not a dirty player. It was the kind of measured answer coaches usually give in the moment, but in this case it immediately stirred up plenty of frustration from Browns fans already primed to see the play through a different lens.
Fitzpatrick was not ejected, though he is expected to be fined for the illegal contact, and that only sharpened the reaction around Monkens defense of him. For Cleveland supporters, the issue is not just the hit itself but the memory attached to the player delivering it, which made the coachs choice of words feel especially touchy in the aftermath. In a rivalry that already carries enough baggage, this was a reminder that even a routine postgame explanation can turn into its own storyline. [Read more 🡒]
Ben Roethlisberger Just Handed Browns Fans The Perfect Reminder
Ben Roethlisberger found a way to stir the pot again, even if it was in jest. On a recent podcast, the former Steelers quarterback made a joking comment that suggested he had never lost to the Browns, a line that immediately invites a fact-check in Cleveland, where the franchise has beaten Pittsburgh multiple times and owns a more recent playoff win than its old rival.
For Browns fans, the bigger takeaway might be the reminder that Pittsburghs long-standing mystique has been chipped away more than once in this matchup. Cleveland has won five straight home games against the Steelers, and Roethlisbergers uncertainty about labeling any team a true contender entering Week 5 only adds to the feeling that the AFC Norths old assumptions no longer hold up the way they used to. [Read more 🡒]