Trade Surprise

When I first heard that the Cleveland Browns had traded running back Trent Richardson to the Indianapolis Colts, I thought that it was someone's idea of a joke. After all, you can't take for fact everything that you see on the Internet. The Browns had drafted Richardson with the third pick of the 2012 NFL Draft. They even traded up one spot to insure that they were able to get the Alabama running back in a Browns uniform. After just 17 games, he's traded. I was stunned. I could see why the Colts would jump at the opportunity to obtain a back as skilled as Richardson but I was still a little surprised that they'd trade a first round pick during the season. They had lost starter Vic Ballard for the season to a ACL injury but they had added Ahmad Bradshaw in the offseason. They seemed to be o.k. at running back. It's not often that a back like Richardson is available after the second game of the season. It's a surprise when a back like Richardson is available so soon after he was drafted. This trade, in general, was quite a shock. It was apparently a shock to Richardson as well. I read that he heard about the trade from the radio. If this is true, I think that it's a terrible way to treat a person. I just think that impacted parties should be notified as soon as the decision makers agree. They should hear from the person that traded him. In this case, Browns CEO Joe Banner. General manager Michael Lombardi has been strangely silent through this surprising trade.

Some have said that Cleveland is now looking to land a franchise quarterback in the 2014 NFL Draft. Having an extra first round pick could help if they have to trade up to get that franchise quarterback. I just think that it's way too early to be maneuvering for the next draft. There are far too many unknowns. They would have to tank fourteen games to remove those unknowns. Besides, the Browns spent a first on quarterback Brandon Weeden in the same draft that brought them Richardson. Weeden could be the quarterback of their dreams. I wonder if they give him the same opportunity to justify his first round status that they gave Richardson. With Weeden, Richardson, and receiver Josh Gordon, it seemed like the new Cleveland Browns finally had some nice players on offense. Now, it looks like they are blowing that up. Maybe, Cleveland, in 17 games, had decided that Trent Richardson wasn't the back that they hoped that he would be and got what they could for him. A first round pick is a real nice return. I'd rather look at the trade in that light than to assume that the Browns are intending to coast into a high draft pick. There's too much football to play to toss a season away. The Colts look like they want to win now. Quarterback Andrew Luck, Richardson, and receiver TY Hilton is a tremendous nucleus of second-year offensive talent. I like this trade for the Colts. I wish that Colts owner Jim Irsay would stay off twitter. He was like a kid on Christmas morning with his pre- and post-trade tweets.

This looks like a fine week for the Cleveland Browns to visit the Minnesota Vikings for a football game.