Elijah Moore got a much-needed change of scenery this offseason, as the New York Jets traded the soon-to-be third-year player to the Cleveland Browns after a year that saw him experience a drop in production and ask for a trade. Now, Moore will catch passes from star quarterback Deshaun Watson, who the former is trying to build chemistry with before training camp. So far, so good.
Moore described to the Browns’ official team website Thursday how Watson took some of his teammates on a trip to Puerto Rico, where Moore got a glimpse of Watson’s craft.
“We were in the hotel, and he’s in the playbook when we’re chilling on the beach,” Moore said. “We just got done working out. We all got work done, and he’s still in the playbook, so seeing how he is with that only gives us more confidence. Like, ‘Okay, let us go look at the playbook one more time. I can’t ask for nothing better.”
The wideout referred to the getaway as a “smooth” trip and expects his relationship with Watson “to go well.” Watson was suspended for the first 11 games of the 2022 NFL season due to allegations of sexual misconduct. He sat out the year prior with the Houston Texans, who traded him to Cleveland in March 2022.
Cleveland acquired Moore and the No. 74 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft from New York in March for the No. 42 pick. Moore joins a Browns wide receiver corps that includes Amari Cooper, Donovan Peoples-Jones and third-round draft selection Cedric Tillman.
Moore totaled 37 receptions for 446 yards and one touchdown last season. Simultaneously, wide receiver Garrett Wilson put together a sizzling rookie campaign for the Jets, ending with him winning Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. Wide receiver Denzel Mims, whom New York selected in the second round of the 2020 draft, also requested a trade before the 2022 season.
Moore hauled in 43 receptions for 538 yards and five touchdowns across 11 games in his rookie season (2021). The Jets selected Moore with the No. 34 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft out of Ole Miss.
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Moore feels right at home with the Browns.
“I can’t do anything but feel blessed to be in the opportunity that I’m in right this moment,” Moore said. “It feels good to be wanted, and it’s going to make any player, any human, go harder when you feel like that, and you feel like you’re around people who want you to be here.
“So I’m going to give it all I got every single day.”
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