All of a sudden, the Cleveland Browns just became instant Super Bowl contenders following the trade to land Odell Beckham Jr.
After all of the rumors dating back to last season, the New York Giants finally pulled the trigger by agreeing to trade star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for a first and third-round pick, along with Jabril Peppers.
For years, the Browns were always considered one of the biggest laughing stocks in the NFL, and rightfully so when taking into consideration that from 2016-17, the team only recorded one win. That’s right, Cleveland ended up on the wrong side of NFL history during the 2017 season when they failed to record a single win, but things have certainly changed for the better thanks to some key changes dating back to last season.
Between finding a way to win seven games in 2018 on top of finally finding a quarterback to build the franchise around in Baker Mayfield, it’s amazing to see a team like the Browns finally have some excitement in an offseason for the first time in what feels like forever.
Now that Beckham is officially heading to Cleveland, that excitement is about to reach a whole new level next season, as it’s tough to even put into words at this point how great of a chance the Browns have to be one of the teams to beat in the AFC.
In fact, Cleveland may still have a long way to go since acquiring Beckham doesn’t guarantee a single thing, but here are three reasons why the Browns should be labeled instant Super Bowl contenders after the deal.