Last month, former Cleveland DT Sika Ika was cut from the Kansas City Chiefs’ practice squad. Now, normally, this isn’t notable news; players get cut all the time in the NFL. This release, however, has a dark overtone for the Browns.
While Ika didn’t have an impressive college career (5 sacks, 11 TFL in four years), his physical attributes are what impressed scouts. At 6’3 335lbs, it’s easy to overlook the lack of production in favor of future potential. Coming out of the University of Baylor, Ika was projected to be a 5th round pick by most scouts, so of course, Andrew Berry and Co. took him in the 3rd round. To say this pick was disastrous would be an understatement. In his sole season in Cleveland, he played sparingly in four games, with zero tackles or sacks. He would be released shortly after the season. Ika then bounced from the Philadelphia Eagles’ practice squad to Kansas City’s, where the Chiefs released him four months later. Andrew Berry used a valuable 3rd round pick on a player who’s not good enough to be on an NFL practice squad. Good GMs can find talent in the later rounds of the draft. In Berry’s case, if it’s not a 1st or 2nd rounder, it’s a dud more often than not.
Andrew Berry took over as general manager in 2020, following the firing of then GM John Dorsey. Since then, his tenure in Cleveland has had its fair share of ups and downs. Sure, he’s the GM who drafted such players like Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Grant Delpit, but he’s also the GM who selected a kicker in the 4th round and drafted Jedrick Wills Jr over All-Pro Tristan Wirfs. Out of the 44 draft picks Berry has made here, 17 are no longer on the roster, with most of those 17 being third and fourth-rounders. Only one player drafted in the Berry regime has gone on to be a Pro Bowler (Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah). It seems in every draft class that he’s been a part of, for every Dawand Jones-like steal, there are two Anthony Schwartz-like reaches that leave fans baffled.
For all the (reasonable) gripes about Berry’s drafting, he’s actually one of the better GMs in terms of acquiring players through trades. He’s acquired starting caliber players such as Amari Cooper, Z’Darius Smith, and Jerry Juedy, all while giving up picks that were no higher than 5th rounders. But while seemingly fleecing teams has become his calling card, the infamous trade for Deshaun Watson has stained Berry’s resume. Trading away six total picks (three first-round, two 4ths, and a 3rd) for a QB who ranks as one of the worst in the league would normally get a GM fired; in Berry’s case, it just put him on the hot seat.
Another reason why Berry should be canned isn’t necessarily his fault, but he should share part of the blame. Since the start of last year, the Browns have had more players arrested for domestic violence than any other team in the NFL. LB Devin Bush, DL Mike Hall Jr., and former Browns Perrion Winfrey and Kareem Hunt have all been in trouble for domestic violence at one point in time. This is an absolutely disgusting trend that makes the organization and fanbase ashamed. While he had nothing to do with these individual situations, Andrew Berry personally picked each and every one of these players to join the team. At the very least, this goes to show how bad his judgment of character is compared to other GMs. This is evident when bringing up the latest player charged with domestic violence under the Berry regime: Quinshon Judkins.
Being selected with the 36th overall pick, Judkins seemed like a steal and the heir-apparent to Nick Chubb. The draft woes that plagued Berry and the Browns looked as if they were a thing of the past. Unfortunately, the former Buckeye, and before that, Ole Miss Rebel couldn’t stay out of trouble long enough to play a single NFL down. On July 12, 2025, Judkins was arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on charges of domestic assault and battery. Judkins’ reprehensible actions aside, this is another draft pick backfire for Andrew Berry. As of this day, Quinshon Judkins is the only 2nd round pick to not sign his rookie contract. This means not only is there a chance Judkins doesn’t play this season, but there’s a small chance he’ll be cut before stepping on the field. Signing players who end up in significant legal trouble for three years straight is certainly a disturbing trend for the Cleveland GM.
In my opinion, given his draft day miscues, overlooking players’ character issues, and the whole Deshaun Watson fiasco, Andrew Berry is on borrowed time. Whether or not he’ll be steering the ship next year remains to be seen. One thing is certain: with the current state of the roster, Berry could be shown the door sooner rather than later.
The post From Dawg Pound To The Doghouse: Andrew Berry’s Questionable Future In Cleveland appeared first on Cleveland Sports Talk .