Another potential quarterback option was tossed out the window for the Cleveland Browns on Tuesday when QB Russell Wilson decided to sign with the New York Giants.
The Browns acquired Kenny Pickett a few weeks ago and he is set to battle for a spot on the depth chart. Where that is will be figured out down the road, but the Browns can’t enter the season with him as the starter.
When it comes to acquiring a quarterback via trade, most of the attention is on Atlanta Falcons QB Kirk Cousins due to his background with Kevin Stefanski. However, a better scenario may be out there for the Browns and the quarterback plays in the NFC as well.
Proposed trade scenario lands the Browns QB Malik Willis from the Green Bay Packers for a 2025 third-round draft pick (No. 94 overall)
Why the Cleveland Browns make the trade
Cleveland is not acting like a front office or coaching staff that feels like they are on the hot seat this offseason. Their seats may be a little warm but this is the current collective that has brought more winning to Northeast Ohio than anyone else over the last few decades. Cleveland has two third-round draft picks and sending the latter of the two on a quarterback who has shown vast improvements makes sense.
Willis appeared in 11 games over the 2022 and 2023 seasons for the Titans and never looked like the QB they hoped he could develop into after selecting him in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft out of Liberty. Change can sometimes be the best thing to happen for a player and that looked to be the case for Willis. After being traded to the Packers, Willis looked like a quarterback who could start games for an NFL team.
“When the Green Bay Packers sent a seventh-round pick to the Tennessee Titans for Malik Willis right ahead of final cuts last season, it was impossible to imagine how much impact he would have in the team's 2024 season, but also how much value he would gain throughout the process. Willis started Weeks 2 and 3 for the Packers after Jordan Love hurt his knee in Brazil in the first game of the regular season. The backup also played extended time against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 8 and against the Chicago Bears in Week 18. Matt Lafleur obviously protected him to some degree, because it would be unwise to ask of him the same they ask of Love. At the same time, Willis did prove he was a more than capable quarterback. In the first game against the Indianapolis Colts, it was in fact a run-heavy gameplan, and when Willis had to throw, he was nearly perfect. But against his former team, the Tennessee Titans, it felt much more like a normal offense. He threw the ball 19 times, completing 13 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown, but also leading the team with six rushing attempts for 73 yards and a score. Willis will probably never be a volume passer, but his ability to create outside of structure can compensate for that in the right circumstances.” — Wendell Ferreira, A to Z Sports Green Bay
Stefanski, like Green Bay’s LaFleur, is known as a good coach at the quarterback position. The Browns won games with four different starting quarterbacks in 2023 on their way to an 11-win season. Cleveland tweaked their game plan and playbook as needed and the Browns rolled out enough wins to get to the postseason.
Willis will be just 26 years old during the 2025 season and has still played in just a total of 18 games (five starts) over the last three years. There is still plenty of upside and potential with Willis, who is a dual-threat quarterback. Trading for Cousins may cost more than the No. 94 pick and it will cost a lot more on the cap.
If Willis doesn’t pan out with the Browns or he does but ends up signing elsewhere in 2026, the Browns could potentially land a comp pick from the NFL. Where the pick lands will depend on his next NFL contract and how many free agents the Browns sign next offseason.
Why the Green Bay Packers make the trade
If the right opportunity presents itself, the Packers can't rule out a potential trade. But it has to be for real value. Willis is entering the final year of his rookie deal, making $1.4 million in 2025. If the Packers trade him away, all the salary moves to the acquiring team, and there would be no dead money.
The Packers tried twice to draft Love's backup, with Sean Clifford in 2023's fifth round and Michael Pratt in 2024's seventh. Neither worked out well, which prompted the need to acquire Willis in the first place.
So if Green Bay does decide to move him, it would be necessary to find another option. At this point, the most likely scenario would include signing Drew Lock, a player whom the Packers liked in the pre-draft process in 2019. Other free agents are Carson Wentz and Desmond Ridder. It's highly likely that there would be a downgrade at the position, so the draft compensation would have to be good enough to justify the risk.
Moreover, the Packers have a somewhat tricky financial situation for 2026. This means that if Willis signs elsewhere in free agency next offseason, the Packers will probably get a compensatory pick in 2027. A trade in 2025 would have to be valuable enough to erase that too. A fifth-rounder is certainly not enough, and a fourth might not be either.
But if the Browns are willing to part ways with a Day 2 pick, things get more spicy. Gutekunst highly values top 100 picks, and rightfully so. Two years ago, he traded cornerback Rasul Douglas and a fifth-round pick to acquire a third-rounder from the Buffalo Bills. He's also traded Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams for high picks. Over the past three years, no team has made more draft picks than the Packers. This year, they had "only" eight. And when Gutekunst was asked about that at the Combine, his response was "yet."Malik Willis has been a valuable asset for the Packers, but he's not untradable by any means. Especially if it's a real opportunity to be a starter again.
