Page 19 - AT

A19
SPORTS Wednesday 13 March 2019

Another receiver megadeal:

Giants trade Beckham to Browns

By BARRY WILNER Browns, who went 7-8-1 last ment with Vikings lineback-
AP Pro Football Writer season after not winning er Anthony Barr, but he
While the free agency a game in 2017, haven't opted instead to return to
spending frenzy runs wild, made the playoffs since Minnesota.
the Giants and Browns 2002. Not that the Jets fell short in
found a way to overshad- The mega-trade came adding talent. The 26-year-
ow it Tuesday night: a trade hours after another busy old Mosley is a four-time Pro
of Odell Beckham Jr. day of dealmaking. Bowl linebacker who will
New York is sending its star The money flowed out of get a reported five years
receiver to Cleveland for New Jersey, with the Jets and $85 million, including a In this Dec. 30, 2018, file photo, Baltimore Ravens outside line-
first- and second-round agreeing Tuesday to con- whopping $51 million guar- backer Za'Darius Smith gestures in the first half of an NFL football
game against the Cleveland Browns in Baltimore.
draft picks in April and tracts with three players: anteed. Associated Press
safety Jabrill Peppers in the wide receivers Jamison
second blockbuster trade Crowder and Josh Bellamy,
in four days. On Saturday, and linebacker C.J. Mosley.
Pittsburgh sent unhappy The team also will re-sign
wideout Antonio Brown cornerback Darryl Roberts.
to Oakland, a deal Brown It streamed out of Green
forced. Bay, with the Packers get-
Beckham is the NFL's high- ting deals with edge rusher
est-paid receiver; he got a Za'Darius Smith, linebacker
five-year, $90 million exten- Preston Smith, safety Adrian
sion last August. He comes Amos and offensive line-
off two injury-plagued sea- man Billy Turner. The Pack-
sons, but when healthy is a ers also cut veteran line-
game-breaking target, just backer Nick Perry.
like Brown. And it poured out of Oak-
The two trades become land once more when the
official Wednesday when Raiders kept their vault
the league's business open and agreed to a four-
year begins. People with year contract with safety
knowledge of the moves Lamarcus Joyner. The Raid-
told The Associated Press ers previously made big
of the trades, speaking moves on offense by trad-
anonymously because the ing for Brown and agreeing
transactions can't be an- to a deal with tackle Trent
nounced until after 4 p.m. Brown.
EDT on Wednesday. Given the "legal tampering"
Beckham is known for his freedom the league now
gravity-defying catches allows for two days, well, let
and breakaway skills, but Ravens general manager
also for being tempera- Eric DeCosta describe the
mental. He was suspended mayhem.
for one game in 2015 for his "Unfortunately for us, the
on-field battles with corner- market is irrational at times
back Josh Norman, then and we can't be held re-
with Carolina. sponsible for what other
Cleveland suddenly looks teams want to pay," De-
like a force in an AFC North Costa said. "All we can do
in which both Baltimore is try to negotiate in good
and Pittsburgh have been faith with agents and the
weakened in the offsea- players."
son. JETS
With Beckham reunited The Jets had more than
with receiver Jarvis Landry, $82.5 million to spend in
a teammate at LSU, it gives free agency, and they are
quarterback Baker May- spending it. They thought
field two top targets. The they also had an agree-