The Cleveland Browns pulled off a heist with the New York Jets, trading for safety Calvin Pryor and solidifying a question mark on the defense.
In the thralls of OTAs and the offseason, the Cleveland Browns quietly had built a solid young defensive unit. Bolstered by No. 1 overall pick Myles Garrett and the likes of Jamie Collins, Danny Shelton and newly-extended Christian Kirksey, the unit had a ton of potential already. Then they came out on Thursday and added even more high-level potential.
On Thursday, the Browns completed a deal for strong safety Calvin Pryor with the New York Jets, as first reported by NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, per NFL.com. In return, the Browns sent linebacker Demario Davis to the Big Apple.
Pryor was the 18th overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft by the Jets. Though he was immediately inserted into the unit as the starter, he's yet to reach his full potential on the field. In fact, his 2016 season was the worst of his career. He's long been a plus run defender coming up from the back, but his coverage skills have proven to be lacking despite an impressive physical profile.
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With that said, Pryor is still just 24 years old (turns 25 in July) and has potential to become the player that made him a first-round pick. Though the Browns have been mired in poor performance for years, let's not pretend that the Jets offered him a great opportunity at success considering how that organization has been run. Thus, Cleveland was able to make a low-cost acquisition that has tremendous upside.
Even better for the Browns, however, is the fact that Pryor answers arguably their biggest defensive question. At both safety spots, the Browns were banking on either largely unproven players, or a rookies such as Jabrill Peppers. Now at strong safety they have some solidity. Even if Pyror never shows the talent of an 18th overall pick, he at least offers stability.
It's no real secret as to why the Jets would be willing to part with Pryor at such a low price. After drafting both Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye, the writing was on the wall for Pryor. The Jets are rebuilding their defense and wanted to move on from a guy who hadn't wholly delivered.
With that said, though, this is the type of move that successful franchises make from the Browns perspective. Given his age and athletic pedigree, Pryor is far from a lost cause. So to go and acquire him at such a low cost is exactly the type of move they should be making. What's more, Pryor fits the bill of what they're trying to do, building a defense based on youth and explosiveness.
Is there any guarantee that Pryor turns his career for the positive in Cleveland? Of course not. However, as the Browns try to find the right pieces to climb out of the league's basement, they're in a position where it's worth the cost to find out if he can be the player the Jets hoped when they drafted him.
