WR CRISIS IN CLEVELAND: Browns Block Buffalo With Sneaky Move to Keep Elijah Moore!

   

The Cleveland Browns definitely find themselves in need of wide receivers after not adding a single receiver in the NFL Draft, and while they did sign veteran pass-catcher Diontae Johnson on Monday, they certainly need to add more pieces.

Here's the funny thing: the Browns could always re-sign Elijah Moore, who spent the last couple of years in Cleveland but remains unsigned in free agency.

Well, the Browns have kind of, sort of taken a step toward potentially retaining him. With the Buffalo Bills apparently looming as a potential threat to sign Moore, Cleveland has opted to place an unrestricted free-agent tender on the 25-year-old, via ESPN's Field Yates.

Nov 17, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns helmet lays on the ground before the game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium. Cincinnati won 41-20.  Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

So, what does that entail? It means that the Browns have placed a $3.428 million tender on Moore, and if the Bills—or any team—try to sign him, they would have to surrender a compensatory draft pick to Cleveland.

It obviously complicates things for Moore, as this now makes it less likely that he will be able to find a home with another NFL squad. But perhaps the Browns actually want to keep Moore, which makes sense considering that they definitely need some depth in their receiving corps behind Jerry Jeudy.

Outside of Johnson, Cleveland has not made any notable additions to the wide receiver position this offseason, which is absolutely a problem considering the Browns may be going with a rookie quarterback in 2025. Retaining Moore would certainly help.

The Ole Miss product caught 61 passes for 538 yards and a touchdown this past year.