Cleveland Browns’ Andrew Berry on the Hot Seat as 2025 NFL Draft Looms

   

It might take a lot to save Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry’s job beyond the 2025 season.

Following the Browns’ disastrous bet on quarterback Deshaun Watson combined with Cleveland limping to a 3-14 finish in 2024, the pressure is on Berry to not just knock the 2025 NFL Draft out of the park but show real progress this upcoming season.

Browns at NFL combine 2025: Questions for Andrew Berry, Kevin Stefanski

Andrew Berry Facing Among The Most Pressure Across the NFL

Bleacher Report NFL anayst Gary Davenport put together a list of how hot the seat is under each general manager across the NFL, with Berry checking in with an 8/10 as the draft nears.

“Life comes at you fast in the NFL,” Davenport writes for B/R. “Just ask Cleveland general manager Andrew Berry. Not that long ago, he was considered a rising young star among NFL executives. Then came the single worst personnel move in NFL history—and now Berry may well be the next general manager who gets shown the door.

“The kicker? The five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed abomination of a contract the Browns gave Deshaun Watson probably wasn’t even Berry’s idea—it reeks of meddling from team owner Jimmy Haslam. But it’s Haslam’s party, and unless the Browns improve markedly in 2025 both Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski could wind up scapegoats for the Watson fiasco.”

As Davenport points out, it is entirely possible that the Browns will make Berry a scapegoat for the Watson contract that he might not have even been fully in favor of.

With the Browns selecting No. 2 overall in this year’s draft, it will be fascinating to watch whether Berry and Cleveland look towards life after Watson and take a quarterback such as Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders to restart the clock, or a game-altering talent such as Penn State’s Abdul Carter or Colorado’s Travis Hunter.

Regardless, it might take an impressive draft haul and stacking some wins this fall to save Berry’s job.