The Cleveland Browns should go all in and sign DeAndre Hopkins
By Chad Porto
The Cleveland Browns need DeAndre Hopkins to push the team over the top.
Two years ago, I wouldn’t be down for this move at all for the Cleveland Browns. I believe in long-term consistency, with reloading, instead of rebuilding. The Browns are going to have to gut half of their roster next season just to afford Deshaun Watson’s lunatic contract. The days of long-term building are over here in Cleveland.
Now, we’re down to our last bullet or two, and we need to make each shot count. That’s why the Cleveland Browns need to go all in on DeAndre Hopkins. The days of making sure we have salary cap space for the next season and draft picks are over. Andrew Berry is betting the farm that he can win a Super Bowl or two in the next two years, and if he can’t, he will be fired.
So will Kevin Stefanski. The two men have to win. There is no, “well, we were one win away from the AFC Title Game” consolation prices anymore. That was fine when we had a future ahead of us that was four to six years deep of prime competition. We no longer have that. The Browns have to maximize their opportunity now.
There is no second chance here.
The Cleveland Browns have to go all in on DeAndre Hopkins
When it was announced that DeAndre Hopkins got released, I had one thought; reunion. Get Hopkins in here and pair him up with everyone’s least favorite quarterback, Deshaun Watson. The man is not a good person, but if he can get anything out of Hopkins, then the signing of Hopkins will have been worsth it.
Now, he’s not what he was, and apologizes to Bill O’Brien, he clearly knew that Hopkins was about to fall off. But still, Hopkins is better than every receiver the Browns currently have, save for Amari Cooper. Do I care that Hopkins is going to push Donovan Peoples-Jones to the slot? Nope. Do I care that Elijah Moore will likely get overlooked, resulting in a waste of a second-round pick? Not even a little.
The Browns have put their fanbase through hell in recent years and if they can give the Browns fandom a championship caliber team, then they owe them that, because we all know the lean years are almost upon us again and when that comes, those desperate for winning will hopefully cling onto 2023 and 2024.
That is, if the Browns can even make the playoffs this year.