Some thoughts, some educated guesses and my feel for the temperature of things now that the Browns are on summer vacation and likely — but never certain — to mostly stay out of the news until training camp begins in late July …The Browns were just cruising toward the end of their annual spring quarterback competition when, suddenly, June 1 hit and the Myles Garrett trade stole the headlines. Few moves actually qualify as seismic in a transactional, ever-changing league, but the Browns and Garrett knew it was time to end their awkward dance.As I’ve been writing since early 2025, the Browns needed to move forward and fully embrace their rebuild. Coming off the record season by Garrett — and a Cleveland defensive campaign that was remarkable given the offense’s inability to help — the Browns were prepared to move on from him while his value was highest.Months of private conversation made clear that the Los Angeles Rams likely valued Garrett more than any other potential suitor. The Browns insisted upon getting Jared Verse back in a trade for many reasons, chief among them that he fits multiple things the Browns value and is a year away from signing an extension. The Browns are still refilling and fortifying the roster, and by early 2027 they’re hoping to have several building blocks in place. Verse, obviously, is seen as one, and the internal hope is that even though the quarterback search is likely to continue, the overall roster will be better and have fewer long-term questions than it had entering this one.Bitonio announces retirement after 12 seasons with the BrownsZac JacksonWe don’t need to recount the whole Garrett saga. And make no mistake, in spite of the Browns’ public insistence that they just made the trade because they found a great deal, it was a saga. But coming away with Verse and three future draft picks while not so subtly signaling their intention to keep getting younger and pointing two years ahead is something the Browns can consider progress.Upgrading the receiving corps in 2026 and taking the first steps toward rebuilding the offensive line can be considered progress, too. There can be small victories even if there aren’t a ton of actual victories in the months ahead, and both the state of the quarterback position and a roster with 25 to 30 players in their first two NFL seasons indicate there won’t be many actual wins.The Browns had to trade Garrett because they failed at the game’s most important position and failed to maximize what they’d long viewed as a real window for contention. Now, the focus smartly shifts to opening a similar window in the back half of 2027 and in the seasons that follow.I think the Browns got enough for Garrett. I think that maybe they could have demanded a little more draft compensation, but not much more. And I do think the trade was unique and important enough that once negotiations got to a certain point, asking for too much more or trying to turn the Rams’ initial offers into an auction might have gotten tricky.The Browns need draft picks. The Browns trade draft picks — and have built a pretty good case that moving picks to maximize value is one of this front office’s strengths. General manager Andrew Berry knows the New York Jets already have three first-round picks in 2027 and, if the early projections on the quality of the 2027 quarterback class are correct, lots of teams will be jockeying for draft position in nine months.The haul for Garrett was Verse plus a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick and a 2029 third-round pick. The Browns already had two extra fourth-rounders in 2027. In the event that they end up finding a quarterback in Shedeur Sanders (or someone else), the Browns can accelerate their rebuild at other positions. If they need to trade two first-round picks plus something else in April, they’ll now have the ammo, and they are trying to have enough young, foundational players in place to justify such a move.Berry’s best trade was either the deal that netted Amari Cooper for two third-day picks in March 2022, or the one he made in the first round in 2025 that got the Browns an extra first-round pick in 2026 and positioned them to draft Quinshon Judkins. Berry traded down again in the first round this year. He traded back into the second round to select safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, whom they had considered taking 19 spots earlier. He made two trades in the third round, one to get out of the round and the second to get back in and take offensive tackle Austin Barber. Follow the trend; this next set of picks will likely be repackaged again.The Browns haven’t won anything yet. But nothing about the Garrett trade is final, and fixing the ongoing quarterback failure has to be the final outcome. The Browns know they struck out on Deshaun Watson but still have him in the mix because they chose to go with Dillon Gabriel and Sanders in 2025. Berry should feel fortunate that he remains in the position to try to fix things after he didn’t trade Garrett in early 2025 and didn’t stop the quarterback carousel, either.We’ll get back to the quarterback competition soon. First-year coach Todd Monken genuinely seems like he wants and needs to see more from Sanders and Watson. The Browns have to know that the outcome from playing Watson probably won’t be any different than it was before. History also says that multiple quarterbacks will have to play this season, so this bridge to 2027 and beyond likely includes more turns and detours.Brendan Sorsby is a supplemental draft candidate because he lost his NCAA eligibility due to gambling issues, although Monken went public saying he wouldn’t be interested in Sorsby because of that. Probably, once all the research on Sorsby’s situation is done, the Browns will end up adopting Monken’s stance. But given the quarterback situation — past, present and future — and the extra draft picks the team has collected, the Browns and Berry must at least explore bidding a mid-round pick on Sorsby and plotting a potential redshirt/developmental situation.This is a franchise that’s embraced players with red flags in the past. Maybe they’re too red here and the full focus is on either 2027 or Sanders taking a giant leap. But the position is too important for the Browns not to fully consider what taking a flier on Sorsby would look like and how the rebuild might change if he ended up being a hit.Yes, the Browns should trade Denzel Ward if they can find the right deal. As for the uncertainty with Grant Delpit ahead of the final year of his contract, the result should either be an extension or a trade, too. There’s no sense in partially embracing a rebuild, and the team should swallow as much dead money as necessary on the salary cap in the next two seasons to get back to spending big money going forward.If Ward is traded, cornerback obviously would go from top-heavy to very thin. The Browns are thin in a lot of spots, but moving on from Ward would fully signal that the young players are expected to be the faces of the defense. Garrett is going to get a statue outside the new stadium someday and Ward might, too, but Carson Schwesinger is going to be the guy on all the banners and billboard pleas for people to actually buy tickets this December.As for the rest of the roster, I wouldn’t be surprised by an experienced addition at cornerback or linebacker if the Browns see a fit, but I think the focus is on continuing to develop young players. The roster should be mostly healthy at the start of camp, so any next moves are likely dependent on injury-related availability once camp gets going. The Browns feel good about having added depth and versatility on the offensive line, though they have to see how things shake out once the pads come on.I think rookie KC Concepcion will be the primary punt returner. I think the competition for the kickoff return and core special teams coverage jobs will be among players already slotted to make the roster as backups. Youth should win out, even as camp brings us a set of surprises. Like having a quarterback competition with no true favorite, some things happen every year.