David Njoku Targeted by AFC North Rival

Could David Njoku team up with his former AFC North rivals?

2025 was a season to forget for Cleveland Browns fans. With a revolving door of quarterbacks, including Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel, and Shedeur Sanders, the Browns found themselves yet again on the outside looking in on the playoffs as well as another off-season of selecting inside the top-10 of the NFL Draft after finishing 5-12 on the season.

With no quarterbacks projected to warrant a first-round selection outside of presumed top overall selection and reigning Heisman Trophy winner, Fernando Mendoza, the Browns are likely to have an open competition between the returning Deshaun Watson and the aforementioned Sanders, who found himself with a Pro Bowl selection after several quarterbacks opted out of the yearly de-facto All-Star game.

The roller coaster quarterback play didn’t help Browns star tight end, Njoku’s production as the former Miami Hurricane had just 33 receptions for 293 yards, and four touchdowns, all of which were the lowest of his career since 2020.

Njoku was also passed on the depth chart in favor of emerging rookie tight end, Harold Fannin Jr., who led the team with 731 yards and six scores in 2025.

This past season would end up being the final one for Njoku in Cleveland, as the 2017 first-round pick announced that he was parting ways with the Browns once the new league year officially began on March 13.

As for Njoku’s future, he still has plenty left in the tank, and will likely look to find a home with a contending team after years of disappointment in Cleveland. According to ESPN’s Bill Barnwell, Njoku may find a suitor in a team he knows very well in the form of AFC North rivals, the Baltimore Ravens.

“While Mark Andrews was re-signed to be the move tight end in Baltimore, the Ravens lost Isaiah Likely and Charlie Kolar over the first week of free agency. The Ravens signed Durham Smythe to help fill in for Kolar, and I wouldn’t be surprised if general manager Eric DeCosta used a Day 3 pick on a blocking tight end to develop over the next few years. But Njoku would be taking over for Likely here as the second tight end in Baltimore’s offense.”

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For the Ravens, Njoku would be a direct replacement for Isaiah Likely, who signed a three-year, $40 million deal with the New York Giants, this off-season.

Despite playing in all 17 games in 2025, former Pro Bowl tight end, Mark Andrews struggled to return to his top-tier form, which could be due to Ravens franchise quarterback, Lamar Jackson missing a handful of games while dealing with back, hamstring, knee, ankle, and toe issues. Andrews was also on a snap count to begin his 2025 campaign after he was slowly brought back after being involved in a serious car accident just weeks before the regular season began.

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This story was originally published March 17, 2026 at 7:19 AM.