AFC North rival trades away star DE at deadline
While three-quarters of the AFC North continue to build up their rosters for potential playoff runs, the Cleveland Browns appear to be selling their 2024 seasonal aspirations, as the team has traded away one of their star players at the trade deadline.
Cleveland is sending DE Za'Darius Smith and a 2026 seventh-round draft pick to the Detroit Lions in exchange for a 2025 fifth-round and a 2026 sixth-round draft pick, per insider Ian Rapoport.
Considering how talented and established Smith is off the edge, the Lions have been gifted the deal of a lifetime. Detroit was in dire need of an edge rusher, as their elite DE Aiden Hutchinson suffered a season-ending broken left tibia in Week 6.
Will Cleveland continue to sell their 2024 roster as the 4:00 PM EST deadline inches ever closer? While it appears to be another case of Juju Smith-Schuster's infamous line, 'the Browns is the Browns,' Pittsburgh is likely laser-focused on the trade deadline themselves, as the team has been linked to both wide receiver trade targets and defensive depth in recent days.
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This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: AFC North rival trades away star DE at deadline
