Week 15's matchup between the Cleveland Browns and the New York Giants will bring up all sorts of old memories. The Giants will likely roll with Colt McCoy, a third-round draft pick for the Browns in 2010, as Daniel Jones' injuries look to be significant enough to keep him sidelined. A bout with COVID-19 will have Jason Garrett out of action, too, and Cleveland's 2019 head coach Freddie Kitchens will be calling plays for New York on Sunday.
But the most obvious recent link between these two teams was established in March of 2019 after the Giants traded away star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. in exchange for Jabrill Peppers and draft picks that would become Dexter Lawrence and Oshane Ximines.
But when Peppers first saw the trade, he reacted as any future Browns teammate of OBJ would react: with excitement. But Twitter can be deceiving. You always have to keep scrolling.
Though the two teams' respective records so far this season may not accurately reflect the impact of the trade — the Browns are 9-4, while the Giants are 5-8 — the consensus opinion is that the Giants were the winners. Odell Beckham has not done a lot to contribute to those nine wins, due to injuries and apparent chemistry issues, though you can't deny his impact in some games earlier this season, including when he erupted for three TDs against Dallas.
His future in Cleveland doesn't hold any promises, though.
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Meanwhile, the recently stingy Giants defense has earned them some hard-fought wins, including a shocker over the Seattle Seahawks in which they held Russell Wilson's offense to just 12 points. Both Peppers and Lawrence are playing at high levels, with the former 'playing [the] best ball' of his career as the Giants look to win the up-for-grabs NFC East. According to one league executive, that's enough for the Giants to consider themselves winners in the deal.
"I would trade [to get] Lawrence and Peppers for Odell Beckham three times over," an NFL exec told ESPN regarding the near two-year-old deal.
One thing is for sure. Odell Beckham Jr. won't be on the field for the Browns on Sunday against his former team, while both Peppers and Lawrence will be ready and raring to go.
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