Browns cut K'Waun Williams,Trade Andy Lee to Carolina

The Cleveland Browns keep on moving as on the same day that the team released linebacker Paul Kruger,the Browns cut corner K'Waun Williams and traded Pro Bowl punter Andy Lee to the Carolina Panthers...

Williams,who had been the nickel corner for the Browns in his two years in Cleveland after being signed as an undrafted free agent out of Pitt,had been suspended for refusing to enter the pre-season opener.
Williams claimed an ankle injury,which was medically confirmed,but the team suspended him for two weeks anyway.
That suspension was expiring this week,but the writing for Williams was on the wall and with Jamar Taylor and Tramon Williams as veterans ahead of him on the depth chart,the tenure for Williams in Cleveland looked to be finished.
Williams might be claimed off waivers by San Francisco,where defensive coordinator Jim O'Neill (formerly with the Browns) might have interest in working with a player that played well for him in the past...

Meanwhile,the Browns sent punter Andy Lee and a seventh round pick in the 2017 draft to the defending NFC Champion Carolina Panthers in exchange for rookie punter Travis Redfern and the Panthers fourth round selection in 2018.
Lee is one of the league's best punters,but getting a fourth round pick for a punter is a pretty nice return.
Lee and Hue Jackson had gotten into verbal jousting in the Browns loss to Tampa Bay last week for a weak effort by Lee against a Buccaneer returner,but even if things were truly settled,the lowly Browns would have been hard pressed to turn down that type of offer,even if the choice is two years away.
Travis Redfern will likely be the Browns punter with zero NFL experience,so look for punters to be on speed dial if Redfern stumbles early.

The Browns will miss Andy Lee,but seriously does losing a punter make much of a difference in the win/loss and the team basically turned a seventh round pick (traded a 2015 to San Francisco) into a good year from Lee and a future fourth rounder.
One cannot argue with that and while K'Wan Williams loses depth in the secondary,the situation clearly couldn't be tolerated..

The beat goes on in Cleveland,but the team seems to have somewhat of a clue as they continue to accumulate future assets.
The key will be taking advantage of those picks-something that has been in short supply in recent years...