Z Smith traded to Browns
Posted: Fri May 12, 2023 7:36 pm
Smith, 2025 6th & 7th
For
2024 5th, 2025 5th
Assume this means that Hunters contract will he addressed. Be surprised if they moved both. Value at first seems so so. I know cap savings has value and is needed however.
https://theathletic.com/4515292/2023/05 ... ed-article
The Cleveland Browns are acquiring edge rusher Za’Darius Smith in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings, team and league sources confirmed to The Athletic on Friday. NFL Network first reported the deal. Here’s what you need to know:
Cleveland will also receive a 2025 sixth-round and 2025 seventh-round pick in exchange for a 2024 fifth-round pick and a 2025 fifth-round pick, according to a team source.
Smith, a three-time Pro Bowler, recorded 10 sacks and 44 combined tackles across 16 starts for Minnesota last season.
Smith’s reworked deal will guarantee him $11.75 million in 2023, per league sources.
The Athletic’s instant analysis:
Why did the Vikings trade Smith?
It’s a combination of factors. The first relates to Minnesota’s cap situation. The team has been constrained by its cap situation all offseason. It’s why Minnesota released Eric Kendricks and Adam Thielen. It’s also why the Vikings restructured Kirk Cousins’ deal. Though those moves helped the Vikings bring in free agents like Marcus Davenport and Byron Murphy Jr., the team still faced challenges. For example, as of Friday morning, the Vikings had yet to sign first-round pick Jordan Addison.
This trade clears the way for Minnesota to make that happen. Another supplementary factor lies in the trajectory of Smith’s production. In the first 10 weeks of the 2022 season, Smith recorded 9 1/2 sacks. In the final eight weeks, he only amassed 1/2 sack. He navigated numerous injuries but is also 30 years old. And then there is the factor of what Smith wanted: which, early in the offseason, was maximum money. This trade and (reworked) deal does not tack on future dollars but it should allow Smith to earn a fair sum this season, then hit free agency. All in all, it was a move that for Minnesota seemed imminent. — Lewis
Why the Browns made the move
The Browns are pretty much all-in on 2023, and they entered the offseason with the defensive line as their top priority. Though they previously signed edge rusher Ogbonnia Okoronkwo to a multiyear deal worth more than $12 million guaranteed and have also invested heavily into boosting their receiving corps, it’s not surprising to see them back in the pass-rush game with Smith. Myles Garrett is one of the league’s most gifted edge rushers, and after the Browns’ Jadeveon Clowney experiment failed, there’s a little bit of desperation and a lot of intrigue involved with adding a player as accomplished as Smith to the group of Garrett, Okoronkwo, fourth-round rookie Isaiah McGuire and 2022 third-round pick Alex Wright.
The Browns plan to score a bunch more points than they did last year with Deshaun Watson fully eligible, and they clearly plan to turn their pass rush loose once they build a lead. — Jackson
Backstory
Smith joined the Vikings on a reported three-year deal last March after backing out of a deal with the Ravens days earlier. Smith spent the first four seasons of his career in Baltimore after being selected by the franchise in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He signed with Green Bay in 2019 and earned two Pro Bowl selections before missing 16 regular-season games in 2021 with a back injury.
For
2024 5th, 2025 5th
Assume this means that Hunters contract will he addressed. Be surprised if they moved both. Value at first seems so so. I know cap savings has value and is needed however.
https://theathletic.com/4515292/2023/05 ... ed-article
The Cleveland Browns are acquiring edge rusher Za’Darius Smith in a trade with the Minnesota Vikings, team and league sources confirmed to The Athletic on Friday. NFL Network first reported the deal. Here’s what you need to know:
Cleveland will also receive a 2025 sixth-round and 2025 seventh-round pick in exchange for a 2024 fifth-round pick and a 2025 fifth-round pick, according to a team source.
Smith, a three-time Pro Bowler, recorded 10 sacks and 44 combined tackles across 16 starts for Minnesota last season.
Smith’s reworked deal will guarantee him $11.75 million in 2023, per league sources.
The Athletic’s instant analysis:
Why did the Vikings trade Smith?
It’s a combination of factors. The first relates to Minnesota’s cap situation. The team has been constrained by its cap situation all offseason. It’s why Minnesota released Eric Kendricks and Adam Thielen. It’s also why the Vikings restructured Kirk Cousins’ deal. Though those moves helped the Vikings bring in free agents like Marcus Davenport and Byron Murphy Jr., the team still faced challenges. For example, as of Friday morning, the Vikings had yet to sign first-round pick Jordan Addison.
This trade clears the way for Minnesota to make that happen. Another supplementary factor lies in the trajectory of Smith’s production. In the first 10 weeks of the 2022 season, Smith recorded 9 1/2 sacks. In the final eight weeks, he only amassed 1/2 sack. He navigated numerous injuries but is also 30 years old. And then there is the factor of what Smith wanted: which, early in the offseason, was maximum money. This trade and (reworked) deal does not tack on future dollars but it should allow Smith to earn a fair sum this season, then hit free agency. All in all, it was a move that for Minnesota seemed imminent. — Lewis
Why the Browns made the move
The Browns are pretty much all-in on 2023, and they entered the offseason with the defensive line as their top priority. Though they previously signed edge rusher Ogbonnia Okoronkwo to a multiyear deal worth more than $12 million guaranteed and have also invested heavily into boosting their receiving corps, it’s not surprising to see them back in the pass-rush game with Smith. Myles Garrett is one of the league’s most gifted edge rushers, and after the Browns’ Jadeveon Clowney experiment failed, there’s a little bit of desperation and a lot of intrigue involved with adding a player as accomplished as Smith to the group of Garrett, Okoronkwo, fourth-round rookie Isaiah McGuire and 2022 third-round pick Alex Wright.
The Browns plan to score a bunch more points than they did last year with Deshaun Watson fully eligible, and they clearly plan to turn their pass rush loose once they build a lead. — Jackson
Backstory
Smith joined the Vikings on a reported three-year deal last March after backing out of a deal with the Ravens days earlier. Smith spent the first four seasons of his career in Baltimore after being selected by the franchise in the fourth round of the 2015 NFL Draft. He signed with Green Bay in 2019 and earned two Pro Bowl selections before missing 16 regular-season games in 2021 with a back injury.