9 Cleveland Browns players who could be heading elsewhere in the NFL next week when free agency starts
A look at the most important Cleveland Browns who could be signing elsewhere in free agency next week.
Free agency begins on Monday with the legal tampering period and it’ll start an important few days for the Cleveland Browns.
The Browns will have to bring in a number of new players from the open market, especially on the offensive like where all five starters are set to hit free agency.
Cleveland has a number of its own free agents who could be heading elsewhere beginning next week, and the list includes several starters. The list would include LG Joel Bitonio, but I believe it’s either retirement or a return happening for the longtime Browns’ Pro Bowler.
9 key Browns players who could sign elsewhere in the NFL next week
RG Wyatt Teller
The Browns trading for Teller back in 2019 is one of their better moves in recent history. Cleveland sent a late-round pick to the Buffalo Bills and got a three-time Pro Bowler back in return. Teller was widely accepted in the locker room as well as the community around Cleveland.
Teller has had his fair share of injuries with the Browns, mostly missing a week or two here and there. On the field, Teller is a good run blocker and below average pass blocker. Teams that live by running the rock would be getting a nice fit for their system. Cleveland wanted to get younger on the offensive line and moved on from Teller despite his desire to return.
LB Devin Bush
Cleveland loves a reclamation project and Bush is the latest for them. Until the 2025 season, Bush hadn’t looked like the first-round player he was drafted to be since his rookie season in 2019. The former Michigan Wolverine was able to refine form in a big way this past season under linebackers coach Jason Tarver.
Bush was near a Pro Bowl level in 2025 with 125 tackles, two sacks, two forced fumbles, and three interceptions. Playing alongside star LB Carson Schwesinger and behind a ferocious defensive line helped him, but Bush really looked like a difference maker in 2025. Bush can give you a linebacker who can cover, as well as work sideline to sideline to chase down runners. A good story for the Browns in 2025 when they didn’t have many of them.
TE David Njoku
Njoku is a strong locker room presence who has been a focal point of the Browns’ offense up until this past season. Cleveland opted to move on from Njoku, a player who would have returned if the Browns were open to having him back at the right place. The Browns drafting Harold Fannin Jr. last season and his quick rise put the writing on the wall.
The former Brown has missed 11 games combined over the past two seasons and has clearly lost a step. Njoku’s 293 receiving yards in 12 games last season showed a diminished role with Fannin getting the targets. 2023 was prime for Njoku when he totaled 882 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 16 games to make the Pro Bowl.
Njoku isn’t going to be a star TE1 anymore, but he’s still very capable of being a difference maker, and even a matchup problem at times. Still a top 25 tight end in the NFL who will give a team mixed results between big plays and big drops.
CB Martin Emerson Jr.
Emerson looked like a real steal for the Browns early on when they drafted him in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Emerson immediately stepped in as the cornerback opposite Denzel Ward and had a strong first two years as a pro including four interceptions in 2023.
Tragedy hit last training camp when Emerson went down early on with an Achilles injury and he missed all of 2025 as a result. 2024 was a down year for Emerson and 2025 was a chance to bounce back in his “money year”. Emerson is going to battle for a starting spot wherever he lands and he matches up well especially against larger wideouts, which is nice to have.
A cornerback who has shown borderline Pro Bowl-level ability early on in his career. Now it’ll be all about what Emerson looks like after the injury.
RT Jack Conklin
If Conklin can stay healthy he’s still a very good right tackle, but that’s been his biggest hurdle. Conklin’s body is shot at this point in his NFL career, and he’s played more than 12 games in a season just once since 2020. Conklin has had multiple season-ending injuries in Cleveland and most recently played eight games in 2025.
Conklin will be 32 when football season gets here and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he doesn’t suit up at all next season and retires. But if he does, a team looking for a guy who can push to start or be a swing tackle seems realistic. A pro’s pro who would have had a far more decorated career if it weren’t for his health.
OT Cam Robinson
The Browns’ offensive line badly needed a tackle early in the season last year when Dawand Jones went down with an injury and they traded for Cam Robinson as a result. Robinson allowed eight sacks, 40 pressures, and 14 penalties in 755 offensive snaps played in 2025. Robinson’s days of being a starting tackle in the NFL should be over, but he would be a good target to be a team’s swing tackle.
Robinson’s 48.2 offensive grade in 2025 fell off a cliff, compared to the 64.7 grade he had the year before, per Pro Football Focus. Cleveland’s offensive line being bad as a whole did no favors for the veteran tackle. The Alabama product has nearly 7,000 offensive snaps played over the last nine seasons and has been mostly healthy the last two seasons.
C Ethan Pocic
Signing Pocic was one of Cleveland’s notable free-agent moves back in 2022, and he gave the Browns what they needed over four seasons. Pocic has missed a couple of games each season while with the Browns, but has been a capable starting center when healthy.
Pocic will be coming off an Achilles tear from Week 14 and it’s unknown when exactly he will be able to return to action. The Browns are getting younger along the offensive line and would have parted ways with Pocic either way. A team signing the former Brown, Bronco, and Seahawk would likely be getting a depth piece with the chance to be more depending on how he returns from injury.
DT Shelby Harris
Harris continues to be a good work piece on the interior of the defensive line as his career goes on. Harris still gives some pass-rush ability, can be a decent run stopper, and his big hands are a problem any time he gets them up.
A strong locker room piece who can be a vocal leader and he’s stayed relatively healthy in Cleveland. Harris is still good enough to be a solid 3-tech in a rotation and can make spot starts when needed. Harris made 32 tackles and a sack in 17 games played with five starts during the 2025 season. I think the Browns should try to keep him around.
RB Jerome Ford
The Browns wouldn’t have kept Ford around in 2025 if it weren’t for his ability to block on third downs and be a rerun man. Ford has given the Browns a good run as a former fifth-round pick, but he was the odd man out with Cleveland selecting Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson in last year’s draft.
Ford had 813 rushing yards in 2023 when he had to be the primary running back for 16 games while splitting time with Kareem Hunt when Nick Chubb went down the first time with an injury. In 2024, Ford had 565 rushing yards and three touchdowns, but his role disappeared to just 24 attempts in 2025. Ford could land somewhere with the potential to be a No. 2 or No. 3 running back depending on the room.
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