Three days after the Cleveland Browns lost their fourth game of the season, 21-17, against the Minnesota Vikings, on October 8,
Browns GM Andrew Berry made yet another trade. This one wasn’t expected or predicted.
For two seasons, there had been speculation that CB Greg Newsome would be traded. Most media outlets had Newsome being shipped off in a draft-day trade. But those years came and went. In training camp this summer, CB M.J. Emerson tore his Achilles and was subsequently placed on IR after surgery, which placed him out for the entire year.
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It was then that any Newsome trade talks ceased. For better or worse, the Browns’ defense needed Newsome more than ever. You don’t just shop around and grab a capable cornerback at ProFootball R Us any time there is a pressing need, much less as the season opener was fast approaching.
Newsome had been the starting outside corner opposite Denzel Ward when Emerson was taken in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft. By mid-season, Emerson had pushed Newsome off his starting spot and sent him to the slot position instead. Still playing, just not at his accustomed spot.
Newsome was a first-round draft pick in 2021. First-rounders are supposed to be the rock and soul of your team. After all, the franchise is paying them to be quality help. So, for a third-round guy to come in and, within half a season, devalue Newsome was quite a feat.
But when DC Jim Schartz was hired, he never quite took a shine to Newsome. In Schwartz’s scheme, the cornerbacks are required to play man and blanket, with a safety over the top sometimes. This means the coverage has to be top-shelf. And Newsome was never a shadow cornerback. He had quickness and flashed being physical with good hand punches and good instincts. But he has always played too high and couldn’t handle the truly explosive speed receivers in the league.
And now with Emerson unavailable for the entire season, Schwartz was stuck with Newsome.
It just so happens that the Jacksonville Jaguars were regretting the contract situation of one of their starting cornerbacks, Tyson Campbell. He was getting paid more than they thought he should be, and wanted to get out of the contract and move on to something different. On July 23, 2024, Jacksonville under head coach Doug Pederson inked Campbell to a four-year, $76.50 million contract that included $53.40 million guaranteed with a signing bonus of $16 million.
That something different was Newsome, who was playing for Cleveland in his fifth-year option campaign. The advantage to a team is that if the player is playing lights out, they will, in all likelihood, sign him to a bigger contract. However, if he has been playing in the mediocre category, the new contract won’t be substantial and will likely be for two or three years, providing financial flexibility to the franchise rather than being locked in.
To Jacksonville, this was a fiscal advantage. For the Browns, Schwartz wasn’t happy with Newsome, yet he was stuck with him. He showed body stiffness and had issues sticking to his receivers, then became too handsy after getting beaten.
Cleveland and Jacksonville had pulled off a trade on draft day since the Jags coveted the versatile Travis Hunter out of Colorado, so Berry and Jags GM James Gladstone were very familiar with each other. All it took was a phone call, and suddenly, the Jaguars had shipped off Campbell and his lofty contract and gotten a cornerback to take his place in Newsome.
Both teams were happy with the player-for-player swap, along with two Day 3 draft picks thrown into the deal.
And now?
Both Campbell and Newsome were picked in the same NFL draft, although Campbell was taken in Round 2, seven picks later.
The trade was not received well at first by Browns fans and their media, and was highly questioned because Newsome had a higher value and was under a much better financial contract in terms of paying him.
But initially, the move saved Cleveland significant cap space. And Newsome played well in a zone defense, such as the kind that the Jaguars used, whereas Campbell had success playing man coverage, which fit into Schwartz’s defensive scheme.
After arriving in Berea the day after he was traded, Campbell was on the practice field. Three days later, he started at cornerback against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Now, Campbell has been a great fit for Schwartz’s defense opposite Ward. He is great in man coverage and has been mentioned as a lock-down corner without using much safety help. This has allowed S Grant Delpit and CB Myles Harden to handle the slot guys.
Because of the change, the Browns are ranked as the #2 passing defense allowing the second fewest yards (2,984), third fewest attempts (448), third fewest completions (279), #10 in passing touchdowns (22), third fewest first down conversions via the pass (145), and fifth least passing plays of 40+ yards (6).
Campbell has allowed the safety group to roam the field. This means guys such as Ronnie Hickman, Rayshawn Jenkins, and the rookie Donovan McMillon have concentrated on stopping the run more and making plays instead of breaking off and having to be concerned with Campbell’s man.
Since arriving in Cleveland, Campbell has had six games with five or more tackles, including 10 against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 12, a 24-10 Cleveland victory. In just 11 games with the Browns, he has 50 total tackles, one tackle for loss, one QB hit, two forced fumbles, 12 batted passes, one pick six, one pressure, and one knockdown.
In a single word, the play of Campbell since coming to Cleveland: reinforce.
He has reinforced the defensive backfield for the Browns. And he has been a very busy man. Campbell has been the sixth most targeted player in the NFL this season, with over 88 targets against him, just 45 of those targets going for receptions.
Against the Steelers last weekend, Campbell was targeted eight times with just four receptions for 20 yards. Two passes were swatted away. Pretty good numbers.
And Campbell is not afraid to stick his head in there and tackle. In fact, he is a willing tackler who has three more years remaining on his contract. He has physicality that has earned him respect from his new teammates and opponents. And Ward and Campbell play well together.
The flip side
Since arriving in Jacksonville, one thing stands out: Newsome is now playing for a winner. The Jaguars are one of the AFC’s best teams, currently sitting at 12-4-0. They are leading the AFC South Division and slotted as the #4 seed.
Newsome has gone from a man-to-man coverage scheme to a more zone-centric coverage scheme with the Jags.
As far as Newsome, he has had a rough go at it so far. He has allowed five touchdowns in just 10 starts. He has just 28 tackles, but has missed seven tackles. One interception and just six batted passes.
One word? Inconsistent.
He hasn’t started every game since arriving in Jacksonville, and all of his stats are mediocre.
In Cleveland, he played on 28.77% of the defensive plays with 284 snaps. With his new team, he has played on just 41.07% of defensive plays, or 428 snaps. That is less than half of the time the defensive unit is on the field.
However, Newsome will be playing on big screen TVs for every Browns fan and their entire roster, while Cleveland’s players will be cleaning out their lockers.
As far as the trade, Newsome says a big “thank you” for the extra game checks this year, while Campbell has been a clear upgrade as more of a pure, outside cover corner for the Browns.
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