Now that the combine is over, the NFL personnel carousel rumor mill starts to spin. One of the big early names on the rumormonger winds is Browns running back Duke Johnson, thanks to an anonymously sourced report from Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot.
The rumor mill spun quickly, with the Eagles and Cowboys alleged to have interest.
At this point, the talk is nothing more than that: talk. The Browns themselves have given zero public indication of any direct desire to trade Johnson.
However, dealing the popular RB does make some sense. His touches decreased under Freddie Kitchens, now the head coach after serving as the interim offensive coordinator in the second half of last season. Johnson led the team in receiving in 2017 but saw his catch total drop from 74 to just 47.
With Nick Chubb quickly asserting himself as the top back and freshly signed Kareem Hunt in the fold, paying Johnson what’s left of a 3-year, $15.6 million deal he signed last summer might not present the type of return the Browns want.
