Jerry Jeudy: ‘I wasn’t satisfied with how they were using me’

When Jerry Jeudy was traded from the Denver Broncos to the Cleveland Browns in March, it was exactly what he wanted.

Long rumored to be headed out of Denver in a trade — to the point where he requested a deal before the 2023 season, only to be rebuffed — the Broncos finally pulled the trigger on the deal.

“I always wanted to finish where I started at, but I just felt I needed a fresh start, a new atmosphere,” Jeudy said when he spoke to Cleveland-area media on Friday.

The near-annual changes took a toll, but that wasn’t all.

“Just knowing the player I am,I just wasn’t satisfied how they were using me,” Jeudy said. “And I felt like … I could do way more than what they expected of me, and I felt limited, so I felt like I had to go somewhere else to really showcase what I’m about.”

In Cleveland, that didn’t happen until Jameis Winston replaced the injured Deshaun Watson as Browns starting quarterback. With 379 yards in Winston’s four starts, Jeudy is enjoying the second-most productive 4-game stretch of his career in terms of receiving yardage, only exceeded by the 385 yards he notched in the final four games of the 2022 season.

That surge compelled the Broncos to pick up the fifth-year option on Jeudy early in Sean Payton’s stewardship as head coach. But a 758-yard, 54-catch season that was pockmarked with bursts of dissatisfaction wasn’t enough to keep him around.

And when he moved on from the only NFL team he’d known …

“It didn’t hurt at all because that’s what I wanted,” Jeudy said.

Jeudy was diplomatic in the briefing with the gaggle of Cleveland-area media. So was Payton when asked about Jeudy on Wednesday.

“He’s explosive,” Payton said. “He separates and … from a talent standpoint, man, you know, he’s got great hips, great transition, and he’s got real good football I.Q.”

But when Jeudy chatted with longtime Cleveland reporter Tony Grossi he was blunt.

“My feelings? I just want to go back up there and whip their ass.” Jeudy said.

Of course, complicating that could be seeing Pat Surtain II on the opposite side. Jeudy said that he expects the Broncos’ top cornerback to shadow him.

“Even in the slot,” Jeudy said. “You know, Patrick — great DI. It doesn’t matter where you are outside, he gonna follow.”

And after practicing against Jeudy at Alabama and for three years with the Broncos, Surtain is ready.

“Obviously he has a lot of stuff at the line and his route running ability is top-tier,” Surtain said. “You just have to be patient. Trust your technique and use your leverage, stuff like that to win. Definitely we watched a lot of film, and we have a good gameplan going on.”

The Broncos might need that against a highly-motivated Jeudy.

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