Winning the Super Bowl is the goal for every team, but making it to the playoffs is the first step. The Cleveland Browns will have a ton of pressure to perform because they had a very disappointing year in 2022 that saw them finish last in the division with a poor 7-10 record.
Cleveland is a franchise that has been willing to take big swings lately to be a title contender. Their huge gamble was giving up a ton of draft capital to get Deshaun Watson from the Houston Texans despite his serious off-the-field concerns.
It is going to be critical for their success to have a better level of play from their quarterback. However, they made sure to keep improving their team on the defensive side of the ball by adding a top pass rusher.
Cleveland complete trade with the Minnesota Vikings
The clearest path to the playoffs is finishing at the top of the division, although that is not going to be easy in the AFC North. Improving the defense was a must for the Browns because they have to face Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals and Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens twice in the regular season. So they made a move in that regard.
Cleveland traded for pass rusher Za’Darius Smith with the Minnesota Vikings. The Browns got the three-time Pro Bowl player, a 2025 sixth-round pick, and 2025 seventh rounder in exchange for fifth round selections in 2024 and 2025, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Pairing Smith with Myles Garrett should give them enough weapons to go after the talented quarterbacks they will meet.
Za’Darius Smith’s contract
The 30-year-old player was expected to be traded by the Vikings to create cap space. Smith got his contract reworked to have 11.75M guaranteed in 2023, per Pelissero. He will also become a free agent next year as part of the deal.