Browns Reportedly Planned to Complete AD Mitchell Trade Before Jets-Colts Deal

The Cleveland Browns were reportedly planning to trade for wide receiver Adonai Mitchell before the Indianapolis Colts sent him to the New York Jets ahead of Tuesday's deadline.

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, the Browns "planned to complete a trade for Mitchell" and send Indianapolis a "late-round pick" in return.

The 23-year-old had "fallen out of favor" with the Colts, per Rapoport.

Mitchell was eventually traded to the Jets as part of the return for star cornerback Sauce Gardner.

The Colts also sent two first-round picks to New York as part of the blockbuster swap.

Indianapolis selected Mitchell with a second-round pick in the 2024 NFL draft, adding him with the No. 52 overall choice.

During his rookie year, he hauled in 23 receptions for 312 yards across 17 games.

This season, Mitchell caught nine passes for 152 yards in eight appearances. While he's shown signs of promise, there has also been plenty of room for improvement.

One such instance of the latter came in Indianapolis' 27-20 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in Week 4, as he appeared to score a long touchdown in the second half. Mitchell ended up dropping the ball before crossing into the end zone, and the play was ultimately ruled a touchback.

He was benched against the Arizona Cardinals two weeks later, gradually falling down the team's depth chart.

Mitchell was only on the field for 24 percent of the Colts' offensive snaps prior to the trade, via Pro Football Reference.

Still, he just turned 23 years old on Oct. 8 and could have been an intriguing piece for a Browns squad looking to build towards the future.

Jerry Jeudy reeled in 90 catches for a team-high 1,229 yards for Cleveland last season, but has recorded just 257 yards while averaging a mere 32.1 yards per game this year.

Still, Jeudy is the only Browns wideout to eclipse 150 receiving yards to open the 2025 season.

While a potential acquisition of Mitchell would have made sense for Cleveland, he'll serve as a complementary option alongside Garrett Wilson in New York instead.