After the fiasco that involved the colander-like Cleveland run defense against a Chargers team that entered the game last in the league in rushing, Andrew Berry had to do something to bolster a defense that has missed the injured Anthony Walker much more than anyone has expected and he did that before the sun rose for another day.
Cleveland traded a 2024 sixth-round choice to the Atlanta Falcons for linebacker Deion Jones and Atlanta's 2024 seventh-round selection in an attempt to help a linebacking position in desperate need of shoring up.
Deion Jones was Atlanta's second-round pick in the 2016 draft from LSU and immediately slotted in as a starter in his rookie year for the Falcons NFC championship team.
The 6'1 227 pound linebacker made the Pro Bowl following the 2017 season and signed a large contract following the 2018 season for four years and fifty-seven million dollars, so Jones is signed through next season for the Browns.
Jones finished last season with seventy-three solo tackles (nine for losses), four and a half sacks, and two interceptions, returning one for a touchdown.
Jones underwent shoulder surgery in the off-season and has been on injured reserve to this point in the season but is expected to be ready to return to the field shortly.
Give the Browns credit here, they didn't address the interior of the defense in the off-season (defensive tackle or linebacker) and that neglect has bitten them thus far.
Deion Jones may not be an elite player but he is a very good one and for the cost (similar to the Amari Cooper swap with Dallas) of flipping a sixth-rounder for a seventh-rounder, could be an excellent addition to the Browns roster.
Jones will count only 1.2 million against this year's cap but next season's contract is at an over thirteen million dollar cost, so Jones will have a hefty cap hit if he does not play well for the remainder of the season.
No comments:
Post a Comment