The Cleveland Browns raised eyebrows across the NFL with its rule proposal that would’ve allowed teams to trade draft capital as far as five years out rather than the league’s current cap of three years in the future.
The proposal raised eyebrows from fans and pundits alike after it was announced, and drew national attention again on Monday, when Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay adamantly declared that it had zero percent chance of being passed at the annual league meetings in Arizona, where it would require 24 out of 32 votes from owners.
Coincidentally, it was announced shortly after the video went viral that the Browns would be withdrawing the proposal, with NFL insider Ian Rapoport reporting that Cleveland had acheived its goal “of generating discussion and forcing teams to discuss it.”
Whether the Browns withdrew the proposal due to embarassment stemming from the clip of McVay or they really were just trying to get a dialouge started regarding a potential change, it’s an overwhelmingly good thing that it’s no more, and no franchise better evidences that than the Cleveland itself.
Four years ago, Cleveland made the league altering decision to trade four first round draft picks to acquire Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson. Watson’s play, to this point, has not justified the trade, and the Browns are still dealing with the fallout of losing such critical draft capital.
If rules had allowed, there’s no telling just how much more draft capital Cleveland might have used in the aquisition.
Being able to trade out picks so far into the future could also lead to regimes and coaching staffs making last ditch efforts to save their jobs without thiking of the future impact, which greatly hinder whoever inherits the situation.
Rule changes can be a good thing for a a sport like football where the game and technoology used in it are constantly evolving, but in this case, the rules are protecting teams from themselves, and hopefully they’ll continue to let them do so.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.