Wan'Dale Robinson #17 of the New York Giants is a top Cleveland Browns WR target.
Getty
Wan'Dale Robinson #17 of the New York Giants is a top Cleveland Browns WR target.
A suggestion here or suggestion there is bound to come up when a team has a need at a position and a free-agent player is on the market and seems to suit that team’s need. But pretty overwhelmingly, in looking at players the Cleveland Browns could pursue in free agency in the next couple of days, one name comes up every time: Giants wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson.
With good reason. Robinson is only 25 years old, and very much fits with the timeline of young offensive weapons the team is building. He is a not a top-shelf star which is helpful in that the Browns won’t need to give him $120 million and that he might actually choose to sign in Cleveland. But Robinson has gotten better every year in the NFL despite playing with seven different starting quarterbacks, and finished last season with 93 catches for 1,014 yards and four touchdowns.
Spotrac projects Robinson to get more than $17 million per year, on a four-year, $70 million deal. Pro Football Focus has that at three years and $63 million. The Browns have plenty of needs on the offensive front, but they need a reliable receiver, and Robinson could well be the one.
Wan’Dale Robinson ‘Primed for a Big Payday’
When looking at targets the Browns could potentially pursue between now and Wednesday’s opening of the NFL’s league year, Robinson is a name that comes up on every list.
Zac Jackson of The Athletic notes there are concerns whether Robinson can play outside, or is strictly a slot guy. Jackson writes: “Robinson seems primed for a big payday after posting 185 receptions the last two seasons with the New York Giants. Robinson is just 25 and has done good work from the slot, but he played more than 40 percent of his snaps last season aligned wide, per Pro Football Focus.”
Chris Easterling of the Akron Beacon-Journal notes that even at $17 million per year, the Browns might not be able to afford Robinson: “This one might get a little bit out of the Browns’ price range, but Robinson profiles as exactly what they need.”
And at the USA Today site Browns Wire, Owen O’Connor writes: “One of the more realistic options for Cleveland this upcoming free agency is young wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson. After a breakout season of 1,014 receiving yards for the New York Giants last year, Robinson is eager to earn a new contract and possibly find a new landing spot.”
Browns Badly Need WR Help
Indeed, the Browns’ receiver group is a mess, and while their spate of quarterbacks is not stellar, either, the performance of starter Shedeur Sanders after taking over the job for the final seven games of the season was hindered by a lack of reliable weapons.
The Browns are hopeful that after a miserable showing in 2025, star receiver Jerry Jeudy can reclaim the form he showed in 2024, when he was a Pro Bowler who racked up 1,229 yards receiving. But that’s hardly a guarantee, and even if Jeudy is more focused and engaged in 2026, the Browns still need a complement.
Again, Robinson makes sense for the Browns. But the Browns have limited cap space and arguably the worst quarterback situation in the NFL–it’s likely Robinson will get a better offer elsewhere.