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Edwards headed to Jets
By: espn.comPosted On: 10/07/2009 1:20 P
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The Cleveland Browns have traded troubled wide receiver Braylon Edwards to the New York Jets.
In the deal, first reported by ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter, the Jets sent key special teams player Jason Trusnik, wide receiver Chansi Stuckey and a pair of draft picks to Cleveland.
Edwards, in his fifth season, did not arrive at the Jets' training facility in time for practice Wednesday morning, but general manager Mike Tannenbaum said he's expected to start immediately "if everything goes as expected."
That includes the team's next game Monday night at Miami.
In Edwards, the Jets obtained a receiver who gives rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez the legitimate deep threat they have lacked -- but who also faces an NFL investigation for off-the-field trouble.
"It's just another piece that we wanted to add," Tannenbaum said. "We're excited to get Braylon. We think he's going to help us. It was a position that we liked, but it was also a position we felt that if there was an opportunity to improve, we were going to go ahead and try to do that."
The league is probing whether Edwards violated the league's conduct policy following accusations he assaulted a friend of NBA star LeBron James' outside a Cleveland nightclub Monday night.
Cleveland police are also looking into the incident.
Although Edwards hasn't been charged with a crime, the league's conduct policy states that discipline may be imposed for "the use or threat of violence."
Edwards has been involved in other off-field incidents, a factor commissioner Roger Goodell considers when handing out any discipline.
In March, Edwards was partying with suspended wide receiver Donte' Stallworth in Miami the night Stallworth later drove drunk and killed a pedestrian. Edwards was not with Stallworth at the time of the accident.
Last November, Edwards was fined $150 and given 30 hours of community service after he was found guilty of driving 120 mph.
"We went through thorough research," Tannenbaum said. "We're comfortable with adding Braylon. We'll cooperate with all the authorities, and we're glad he's here. We did our due diligence."
Browns coach Eric Mangini said the decision to deal Edwards was not a direct result of the altercation. He said Edwards did not ask to be dealt.
"This is a fresh start for Braylon," Mangini said. "It's a great opportunity for him and I expressed to him that I hope he takes advantage of it."
Edwards is the second big-play offensive weapon traded by Mangini, who sent tight end Kellen Winslow to Tampa Bay in February for draft picks.
The Jets, off to a 3-1 start, had been looking to replace Laveranues Coles in the starting lineup since allowing him to become a free agent in the offseason.
They looked into former Giants star Plaxico Burress' legal status before the draft, and were mentioned in possible trade talks for Denver's Brandon Marshall.
"We've been talking with Cleveland for a while and talking about different combinations and finally we were able to get a landing spot that was good for them and good for us," Tannenbaum said. "We're excited to add Braylon to our team."
San Francisco also filed tampering charges against the Jets in September, claiming they were nosing around wide receiver Michael Crabtree, the 49ers' top draft pick. The league is still looking into those charges.
"We deny the allegation, and it's with the league," Tannenbaum said.
Edwards has a year remaining on his contract, but the Jets had no immediate plans to sign him to a new deal during this season.
"Right now, our intentions are that he's going to be here with the contract we acquired in the trade," Tannenbaum said.
According to an NFL source, the Jets gave up draft picks in the third and fifth rounds in the deal, Schefter reported. The third-round pick is a conditional pick and could turn into second-round pick if Edwards catches a certain number of passes this season. That is said to be a high number, but if Edwards lights it up in New York the way the Jets are hoping, the Browns then would get a second-round pick in return.
Edwards, in his fifth season, has 10 receptions for 139 yards but was held to no catches for the first time in his career in the winless Browns' 23-20 overtime loss to Cincinnati on Sunday. His best season came in 2006, when he had 80 catches for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns. But he faced criticism in Cleveland last season for the number of passes he dropped.
For his career, Edwards has 238 catches for 3,697 yards and 28 touchdowns.
It's the second major trade the Jets have made with the Browns and Eric Mangini, their former coach. On the first day of the draft in April, New York acquired the fifth overall pick from Cleveland to select Sanchez; its second-rounder (No. 52); and defensive end Kenyon Coleman, safety Abram Elam and quarterback Brett Ratliff.
Stuckey, who won the No. 2 receiver spot opposite Jerricho Cotchery out of training camp, has 11 catches for 120 yards and a touchdown. He was a seventh-round draft pick out of Clemson in 2007, but missed his first season with a foot injury. Stuckey had 32 receptions last season, catching three touchdown passes from Brett Favre.
Trusnik, signed as an undrafted free agent out of Ohio Northern in 2007, is a special teams ace and backup linebacker. He was selected as the AFC's special teams player of the week in Week 3 after forcing and recovering a fumble on a kickoff in the Jets' 24-17 win over Tennessee.
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