Getty Image / Nick Cammett
The Minnesota Vikings have been trying to move on from some of their big stars this offseason.
They already released Adam Theilen a couple of months ago.
Minnesota has also been expected to move on from Dalvin Cook.
The most surprising player that ended up in trade talks was star pass rusher Za’Darius Smith.
After one Pro Bowl season with the Vikings, Smith ended up requesting a trade.
Once we made it past the draft without a deal getting done, it seemed unclear whether he would actually be traded.
Today, they finally found a trade partner for him.
According to NFL insider Ian Rapoport, the Cleveland Browns are trading for Smith with a reworked contract that will pay him $11.75 million for the 2023 season and see him become a free agent after this year.
The #Vikings are trading three-time Pro Bowl pass rusher Za’Darius Smith to the #Browns, sources tell me and @TomPelissero.
His reworked deal guarantees him $11.75 million in 2023 and he’ll be a FA next March. Deal negotiated by his new agent @ErikBurkhardt of @RocNationSports. pic.twitter.com/dBld2TfSzp
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 12, 2023
According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the trade sees the Browns send a 2024 5th round pick and a 2025 5th round pick in exchange for Smith and 6th and 7th round picks in 2025.
The full trade, per league source:#Browns get:
Za'Darius Smith
2025 6th-round pick
2025 7th-roundpick#Vikings get:
2024 5th-round pick
2025 5th-round pick https://t.co/outlkV71ME— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) May 12, 2023
The Cleveland Browns had been looking for an edge rusher to line up alongside Myles Garrett after not bringing Jadeveon Clowney back this offseason.
They found a pretty good one in Smith. Za’Darius Smith racked up 10 sacks in his first season with the Vikings to earn his 3rd Pro Bowl nod in the last four seasons.
He’ll form one of the NFL’s most formidable pass rushes in Cleveland and they could once again find themselves in contention in the AFC North thanks to that defense.