Patriots trade for Browns defensive end Danny Shelton
The 24-year-old former first-round pick joins a young defensive line.
The Patriots on Saturday acquired defensive tackle Danny Shelton from the Cleveland Browns, according to ESPN.
New England also got a 2018 fifth-round pick in the deal, and in return, Cleveland received a 2019 third-round pick. A league source confirmed the trade Saturday afternoon.
The Browns are trading DT Danny Shelton to the Patriots for a conditional pick, league sources tell @AdamSchefter and me.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) March 10, 2018
Final terms of the deal: the Patriots acquire Danny Shelton and a 2018 fifth-round pick from the Browns for 2019 third-round pick. https://t.co/zGDkxvLKEV
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) March 10, 2018
The trade comes just days after New England declined to pick up Alan Branch’s option and Ricky Jean Francois said goodbye to the organization.
Shelton is the latest first-round draft pick to be dumped by the Browns, whose inability to choose good players in recent years is at the heart of the team’s woeful record. Cleveland went 0-16 last season and is an embarrassing 4-44 in the past three seasons.
Since 2010, the Browns have selected 13 players in the first round, and only nine remain with the team.
Shelton, 24, was drafted 12th overall by the Browns in 2015. The former Washington Huskie, who stands at 6 feet 2 inches and weighs 335 pounds, has played in 46 games, including 44 starts, over the last three seasons, rolling up 71 tackles and 1.5 sacks.
Shelton will join a young defensive line unit that includes Lawrence Guy (27), Malcom Brown (24), Vincent Valentine (24), and Adam Butler (23).
Shelton’s cash and cap number for the Patriots in 2018 will be $2,030,955. He doesn’t have any bonuses tied to his contract as his base salary is fully guaranteed. The Browns take a dead cap hit of $1,692,940.
The Patriots can also trigger Shelton’s fifth-year option — guaranteed for injury only until next March — any time between now and early May.
Trading Shelton to New England was the latest move by New Cleveland general manager John Dorsey in his attempts to remake the team. Dorsey sent shockwaves across the NFL with three major deals on Friday, acquiring quarterback Tyrod Taylor from Buffalo, wide receiver Jarvis Landry from Miami, and cornerback Damarious Randall from Green Bay. He also traded quarterback DeShone Kizer to the Packers, a move that could impact the Browns’ plans in free agency and the upcoming draft.
