Trade deadline rumors get more interesting when the 2 teams involved are about to play each other. Front offices spend all season tracking players they might want to acquire, but it is rare for one of those targets to line up against them weeks before the deadline. That is the situation facing the Browns this week. One of the running backs most often linked to Cleveland will be in the opposing backfield on Sunday.
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report named the Browns as potential suitors for Tennessee Titans running back Tony Pollard.
“GM Mike Borgonzi should still be thinking long-term, and the plan should involve either replacing Ward or putting more pieces around him. Running back Tony Pollard is a good support piece for Ward right now, but he’s 29 years old and an impending free agent. He should have a solid trade market, though, as he has four 1,000-yard seasons on his resume and could upgrade several of the backfields that have been impacted by injuries this season,” Knox wrote.
Knox projected Pollard’s value at a 2027 5th-round pick. That is a manageable price for a team holding 11 selections in next year’s draft, including 2 in the 1st round.
The need is clear. Quinshon Judkins missed the win over the Baltimore Ravens with an ankle injury and was limited in practice Wednesday. Raheim Sanders is on injured reserve with a hip injury, and Dylan Sampson is still working back from a knee injury. Audric Estime scored the tying touchdown against Baltimore a week after signing off the Minnesota Vikings’ practice squad, but the Browns are leaning on depth that was never meant to carry this much of the load.
Pollard would bring stability. He topped 1,000 rushing yards in each of the 4 seasons from 2022 through 2025 and made the Pro Bowl in 2022 with the Dallas Cowboys. He has 6,131 career rushing yards and 34 touchdowns, along with nearly 1,800 receiving yards.
His 2026 production has been more modest. Pollard has 349 yards and a touchdown on 87 carries, an average of 4.0 yards per carry, for an offense that has struggled to move the ball. He has also caught just 8 passes for 24 yards.
The Titans got their first win of the season Sunday, 26-20 over the Indianapolis Colts. Even so, Cam Ward threw for only 102 yards. At 1-5, Tennessee has every reason to move an expiring contract.
The Browns visit the Titans on Sunday, so Andrew Berry’s staff will get a close look at Pollard 16 days before the November 10 deadline. Pollard will be trying to help Tennessee knock Cleveland out of 1st place in the AFC North. If he has a big day, the Browns may come away even more convinced he could help them in a playoff push.
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