Cornerback Tyson Campbell, acquired from Jacksonville in exchange for Greg Newsome, is expected to take Newsome's place on the outside opposite Denzel Ward as soon as Sunday in Pittsburgh. (Cleveland Browns)
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Editor’s note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns and NFL analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
On Wednesday, Denzel Ward said he was shocked by the trade of quarterback Joe Flacco. On Thursday, he was beside himself reacting to the trade of cornerback Greg Newsome.
“I’m hurt, man. Ain’t gonna lie. I’m hurt by it,” Ward said. “That’s really my brother. Been through a lot with him. Very close, very connected. I know he’s gonna ball out, do great for those guys.”
In the last year of his rookie contract, Newsome was traded to Jacksonville for cornerback Tyson Campbell, who has three years remaining on a four-year contract he signed with the Jaguars in 2024 for $76 million.
Campbell was drafted seven spots after Newsome in 2021 at the top of the second round, No. 33 overall. At 6-1 and 194 pounds, Campbell is a tad bigger than Newsome (6-0, 192) and has six interceptions in 60 NFL games compared to Newsome’s three in 59 games.
Campbell arrived Thursday morning and defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said he hoped to have Campbell up to speed to play Sunday in Pittsburgh.
“We’ve gotten players ready in less time than that,” Schwartz said.
“Our excitement of Tyson in no way diminishes what we felt about Greg,” Schwartz continued. “But Tyson’s got size, he’s got excellent straight-line speed, timed well and he has track experience. I mean, the guy’s a former 100-meter, 200-meter state champion in the state of Florida, which will get your attention.
“You know, he’s a physical player, he’s a good tackler, I’d have to say, probably wasn’t a great fit for their scheme change [to more zone coverage]. And he’s probably a little bit more of a scheme fit for us. He’s a good press cover guy, challenges guys on the outside part of the field. We’re excited about having a good player and a guy that’s been productive in the NFL. We’ll try to get him up as quick as we can.”
Of Newsome, Schwartz said, “Greg’s been a good quality player for us. He’s covered well on the outside part of the field. I thought he improved his tackling and his physical play. He always brought a lot of energy, and his relentless positive attitude was a big thing for us and we certainly wish him the best. I’ll always be a fan of Greg Newsome.”
Campbell is likely to be spelled on the outside by Dom Jones, the undrafted free agent from Colorado State who has really come on to earn a spot on the 53.
“We’re excited about Dom Jones,” Schwartz said. “Dom is sort of, he’s leaped every hurdle we put in front of him since he was an undrafted player. He’s big, he’s strong, he plays square, and he plays physical – all things that we like.”
Shedeur on call
Like everyone, Shedeur Sanders is waiting to find out his status for Sunday’s game in Pittsburgh in the wake of the trade of Joe Flacco.
Coach Kevin Stefanski has not said if Sanders or practice squadder Bailey Zappe would serve as QB2 behind starter Dillon Gabriel.
“We're gonna make sure we do everything we can to make sure Dillon's ready for the game, so whatever that means,” Sanders said. “So each and every day, even when Joe was the starter of everything, to prepare the right way and be ready to know that you can get out there at any point in time. You know, I'm overly confident within myself. So I know when I first got here, I'm like, you know, it's up to the coaches. Whatever decision, they make them, and I'm fine with it.”
Sanders sounded optimistic that he would get the promotion to QB2.
“I'm in a great mental space overall,” he said. “I would say you tend to get a little bit more excited, you know, when you see a light at the end of the tunnel, for sure. So my job at first was, you know, to prepare the defense, and I think I did a pretty good job … but they got Myles Garrett and everybody over there, so, you know. But anyways, I think I did a pretty good job, and whatever my role is here, like, I'm thankful and I'm happy.”
Sanders didn’t want to respond to a question about the critical comments made by ESPN’s Rex Ryan two weeks ago. Ryan said Sanders should be embarrassed about not working hard enough to win playing time.
“We're not on no negativity from now on, man,” Sanders said. “We’re not doing that. I'm just here to be positive and I don't speak on anything negative, you know, so that's the new wave that we're going forward with. Anything negative, we're not talking about it.”
Brownie bits
Long-time guard Joel Bitonio is the only offensive captain after the trade of Flacco. He does not feel the trades of Flacco and Newsome mean the organization is giving up on the 2025 season. “We look at it like the NFL is a game of inches,” Bitonio said. “We’re a couple plays away from being 3-2 and another play away from being 0-5, unfortunately. I think there’s a good team in here, and I think the organization still feels that way. We have to find a way to get wins. But I don’t think anyone in this locker room is not focused on trying to win this next game.” …
Schwartz on the 80-yard game-winning touchdown drive engineered by Carson Wentz in the London game: “I don’t think I’ve been able to keep any food down since we gave up that touchdown. And when you get the lead in the fourth quarter, hallmark of great defense is, you close the game out, and we failed in that regard. A couple of years ago we had one against Seattle. You know, you don’t have many of them, but they stick with you, they stick with you for a lifetime.” …
Special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone swears the 51-yard field goal miss by Minnesota kicker Will Reichard did not hit a cable supporting the camera above the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium field. He said the coaches film does not show the ball deflecting off a cable. Reichard's kick started out straight for the middle of the uprights, but the ball took a wild right turn and missed badly. "To me, if it would have hit like a wire or something, I feel like he would have reacted,” Ventrone said. “He didn’t react at all. He looked like he missed the kick, and that’s how his reaction was.” …
Jerry Jeudy’s catch rate of 34.3% (15 of 35) is the lowest of his career and his five drops put him on a career-low pace of 17 for the season. But offensive coordinator Tommy Rees says the team is not losing confidence in Jeudy. “We have nothing but belief and trust in Jerry to get all this right,” Rees said. “And we’re going to keep getting him the ball, and keep counting on him to be a guy that makes plays for us. [We’re] really, really supportive of the player Jerry is, the way he prepares, what he’s going to mean in this football team moving forward, and know that he’s going to play well for us.”