NEWSLETTER
Cleveland Browns rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson has been one of my favorite players to watch this preseason, and now he’s won the backup job to Deshaun Watson. The Browns signaled such this evening when they traded veteran quarterback Joshua Dobbs to the Arizona Cardinals. According to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero, Arizona is sending a 2024 fifth-round pick to the Browns in exchange for Dobbs and a 2024 seventh-round pick.
The trade makes it all but official that rookie quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson will be Deshaun Watson’s backup in Cleveland this season. Thompson-Robinson made a strong first impression on the Browns during the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio earlier this month.
The fifth-rounder out of UCLA came into camp as a fifth-round pick, possibly fighting for a spot on the practice squad or the emergency quarterback role in Cleveland. After completing 30-of-46 passes for 348 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in three preseason games, the Browns have seen enough to make him their backup to Watson. Cleveland waived Kellen Mond on Wednesday and have now traded Joshua Dobbs, clearing the way for DTR.
The Cardinals have been busy today. The Dobbs trade was their third trade of the day. Earlier today Arizona traded former eighth-overall pick Isaiah Simmons to the New York Giants, marking the end of Simmons’ time in the desert.
The former Clemson linebacker is a big, athletic player who just hasn’t been able to find his footing with the Cardinals. Arizona GM Monti Ossenfort declined his fifth-year option earlier this year, and the team asked Simmons to move from linebacker to defensive back. That move hasn’t panned out the way the Cardinals hoped, so it’s on the New York for Simmons. The Giants sent a 2024 seventh-round pick to the Cardinals in return.
Arizona also made a trade this afternoon, sending offensive lineman Josh Jones and a seventh-round pick to the Texans for a fifth-round pick. So, Arizona has acquired Josh Dobbs, a fifth-round pick, and a seventh-round selection today in exchange for Isaiah Simmons, a fifth-round pick and a seventh-round pick. So, essentially the Cardinals swapped Isaiah Simmons for Josh Dobbs, which says a lot about how Arizona viewed the former first-rounder.
For Arizona, it means that the Cardinals aren’t sure who will start at quarterback in Week 1 with Kyler Murray sidelined for the foreseeable future. Murray is recovering from a torn ACL last season and has been speculated to be out for as long as the first half of this season.
