NFL draft: Browns trade with Vikings for No. 3 pick
NEW YORK -- The Cleveland Browns have made the first trade of the NFL draft, swapping positions with Minnesota at the top of the first round.
The Browns will pick third, presumably to take Alabama running back Trent Richardson, and the Vikings have moved back one spot to fourth. Minnesota collected picks in the fourth, fifth and seventh rounds.
Minnesota can still pick up USC tackle Matt Kalil at No. 4, or possibly LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne.
The Browns likely made the move so Tampa Bay, which picks fifth, could leapfrog them for Richardson.
If the Browns take Richardson and the Vikings take Claiborne, it would really put the Tampy Bay Buccaneers in a bind. They probably wouldn’t take Kalil, and they would be hard pressed to take Oklahoma State receiver Justin Blackmon, seeing as they already spent so much on former San Diego receiver Vincent Jackson in free agency.
The Buccaneers have to be hoping the Vikings take Kalil.
MORE
Photos: 2012 NFL draft picks
First round of draft is a rush to judgment
NFL considers suspending Pro Bowl after 2013
NFL draft: Browns trade with Vikings for No. 3 pick
Get our high school sports newsletter
Prep Rally is devoted to the SoCal high school sports experience, bringing you scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
