Cleveland Browns Rumors: Team Planning To Trade Johnny Manziel To Eagles For Sam Bradford

The Cleveland Browns are rumored to be working on a trade that would send Johnny Manziel to the Philadelphia Eagles, landing Sam Bradford and ending Manziel’s short-lived era with the team.

Reports have been growing in the past few days that the Browns are ready to be done with Manziel, who reportedly didn’t put in much work last year and struggled in the short time he did have on the field. But Manziel’s offseason trip to rehab was complicating things a bit, leaving the Browns in a holding pattern to see how — if at all — he might be changed after his rehab stay.

Now it appears the Cleveland Browns won’t be waiting that long. Chat Sports writer Mack Ferguson is reporting that the Browns are trying to trade Manziel and are once again taking a swing at Sam Bradford:

“According to a source very close to an agent involved in the trade talks, the Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles have engaged in multiple discussions to send Browns QB Johnny Manziel, who is currently in rehab, and draft picks, to the Eagles in exchange for Eagles QB Sam Bradford, who was recently acquired via trade from the St. Louis Rams. According to our source, both sides are very motivated to get a deal done, with each side valuing the other’s QB more than the QB currently on their rosters.”

The move would make sense on the Browns’ part. The team tried to land Bradford when the St. Louis Rams initially put him on the trade block, but the Rams opted for a straight-up deal to get Nick Foles.

There could be trouble with the Cleveland Browns trade rumors, Ferguson notes. For one, Bradford isn’t too enthusiastic about signing a long-term deal with the Browns, making the price of Manziel, plus a first round draft pick, very steep.

The Browns also may not be ready to give up on Manziel just yet. Mary Cay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer said she thinks with all the team has invested in Manziel, they will at least give him another chance to prove himself.

“There is some thought that the offense changed too drastically when Manziel played, and that it threw off the entire unit. What’s more, the Browns now have one of Manziel’s mentors in Kevin O’Connell as their quarterbacks coach. Manziel thrived and improved in the few months he spent with O’Connell before the draft last year, and the Browns are confident he can bring out the best in Manziel.”

If the Cleveland Brown rumors are true, and they do swing a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles, it still might not guarantee Johnny Manziel a starting spot in the NFL. The Eagles are reportedly very interested in trading up to land Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, who could start immediately in Chip Kelly’s offense.

[Image via Getty Images/Tom Szczerbowski]