JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Jaguars are not staying content with the status quo after their 4-1 start. The Jaguars and general manager James Gladstone made a big move late Wednesday evening, trading starting cornerback Tyson Campbell to the Cleveland Browns for cornerback Greg Newsome.
The move came as a relative surprise for most after the Jaguars’ 4-1 start displayed a strength in the defense and especially the secondary. But the Jaguars have been aggressive and willing to roll the dice on the roster ever since Gladstone and co. were hired, and the Campbell move was no different.
Campbell’s biggest issues in his four-plus year tenure in Jacksonville were injuries and playing the ball in the air. Campbell had little problem dealing with the first one in 2025, starting all five games and playing 99% of the snaps for the Jaguars’ defense.
But issues with playing the ball in a defensive scheme that predicates itself around doing so had popped up throughout the season. The four biggest gains in the air the Jaguars have allowed — plays of 50, 42, 34, and 31 yards had all come on deep balls against Campbell. One was when he was beat on a double move by Nico Collins, while the other three came on vertical passes in whi h he had a chance to make the play.
In swapping out Campbell for Newsome — who projects as a smaller and less physical corner but a more natural zone defender and playmaker — the Jaguars have a chance to upgrade in the short-term.
“We are trying to win football games now and part of this trade is that we think Greg Newsome helps us do that,” Jaguars general manager James Gladstone said in a statement on Thursday morning.
“We felt like Greg’s skill set with how we’ve shifted the defensive scheme to play with more vision on the quarterback to be a strong fit for how we operate and his capacity to find the football was a trait he possessed.”
It is not as if the Jaguars are getting a player the Browns were just dumping, either. Newsome had played well for the Browns and would have been an extension candidate in Cleveland since his deal ends at the conclusion of the 2025 season.
Just because the Jaguars traded for Newsome does not mean they are leveraged into paying him, however. He will now have at least 12 regular-season games (really 11 since chances are likely small he plays much in Week 6) to make an impact in Jacksonville and earn consideration for a new deal.
The Jaguars have already seen two players in similar situations have career-best starts to the season in Devin Lloyd and Travis Etienne, and there is no need to make a decision on Newsome now. They have the time to do so, while getting Campbell off the books gives the Jaguars more flexibility beyond 2026.
This does not feel like the Jaguars dumping a salary or simply deeming a player not a fit. It instead appears as if in the natural cycle of making calls around the league ahead of the trade deadline, the Jaguars found the perfect trade partner; Newsome fits well in Jacksonville, and Campbell should thrive in Cleveland’s defensive scheme that will place a greater emphasis on his physical skill set.
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