When the Atlanta Falcons sent five draft picks to the Cleveland Browns to move up from 26th to sixth in the first round of the 2011 NFL draft, many figured that the Browns had finally scored the deal that would allow them to acquire multiple pieces in what had been a decade-long rebuilding process.
When the dust had settled and the trade was made, Atlanta yielded two first-round picks, two fourth-round picks and a second-round pick to Cleveland for a pick in the top 10 that landed it wide receiver Julio Jones.
A nice little bounty to move back just 20 spots in the first round.
The Browns turned this deal into defensive tackle Phil Taylor, wide receiver Greg Little and fullback Owen Marecic in the 2011 draft. They then were able to net quarterback Brandon Weeden and trade up for Trent Richardson in the first round the following season.
Unfortunately for the Browns, only one player remains on the team after they released Greg Little on Friday.
Weeden was released earlier this offseason. The former first-round pick won five of his 20 starts as a member of the Browns, throwing 23 touchdowns compared to 26 interceptions for a pedestrian 71.8 quarterback rating.
Marecic was released prior to the start of the 2013 season. He touched the ball a total of nine times, playing mostly on special teams during his two-year tenure in Cleveland. After a brief stint with the San Francisco 49ers last season, Marecic is currently a free agent.
Courtesy of Cleveland.com
Richardson started out his Browns career with a solid rookie campaign. He put up over 1,300 yards and 12 touchdowns. Seemingly worried about his ability to progress, the Browns dealt Richardson to the Indianapolis Colts early last season for a first-round pick in the draft this month. Cleveland was then able to turn that into Johnny Manziel.
While a nice trade off for Cleveland, it’s important to note that Richardson wasn’t necessarily too much of a product of the Jones deal. It utilized one of the fourth-round picks to move up one spot with the Minnesota Vikings in the 2012 NFL draft to nab Richardson.
Courtesy of Bleacher Report: Little was a drop waiting to happen in Cleveland.
For his part, Little did little-to-nothing (pun intended) in his three years with Cleveland. The former North Carolina standout recorded 155 receptions, for over 1,800 yards and eight scores prior to being released on Friday. He also dropped nearly 11 percent of the passes thrown in his direction during that span.
The only remaining player Cleveland has to show for the Jones deal is defensive tackle Phil Taylor, who has started 37 games in three seasons.
This is more a product of Cleveland’s previous front office, which struggled finding the right players at the right time on draft day.
Cameron Jordan and Muhammed Wilkerson were both still on the board when Cleveland exhausted the 21st overall pick on Taylor. While he’s been decent along the interior of its offensive line, those are two Pro Bowl-caliber players right there.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8SsCqpa-Lk
The biggest black eye in this deal, Brandon Weeden, was selected over at least a half of dozen players that have since earned trips to the Pro Bowl, most notably Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson.
Let’s hope for the Browns sake that the draft-day deals they made earlier this month don’t turn out the same way. After all, it does appear that they have added a potential franchise quarterback and starting cornerback as well as a 2015 first-round pick. Don’t screw it up, Cleveland.
Photo: Daniel Shirey, USA Today