Patriots Trade Jamie Collins To Browns For Draft Pick
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Patriots have traded linebacker Jamie Collins to the Cleveland Browns. The move was first reported by ESPN's Adam Schefter and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
In return, the Patriots will receive a draft pick at the end of the third round or in the fourth round.
Collins, 27, is set to become a free agent this upcoming offseason. He was initially drafted by the Patriots in the second round of the 2013 draft.
The linebacker has recorded 43 total tackles, one sack, one forced fumble and two interceptions on the season. In his three-plus-year career, he's made 291 tackles, 10.5 sacks, 10 forced fumbles and five interceptions in 50 games played. In seven career playoff games, he's recorded 50 tackles, three sacks and two interceptions.
In his conference call with Patriots reporters on Monday morning, Belichick was asked about the team's limited use of Collins against the Bills on Sunday.
"We used our linebackers based on the personnel group that we had called, so those groups could have come up at any time," Belichick said. "So yeah, that's how we did it."
Collins' free agency has been a topic of discussion for some time, as it coincides with fellow linebacker Dont'a Hightower's free agency. Previously, Chandler Jones' impending free agency has factored in to that conversation as well, but Belichick traded Jones to Arizona during the offseason. Thus, the team's decision to back Hightower as the defensive leader seems to have been made.
The Patriots drafted linebacker Elandon Roberts in this year's draft, and they acquired linebacker Kyle Van Noy last week in a trade with Detroit.
Former Patriots coaching assistant and longtime Belichick colleague Michael Lombardi shared some insight into some issues the team might have been having with Collins:
Collins will be going from the 7-1 Patriots to the 0-8 Browns just one day ahead of the NFL's trade deadline on Nov. 1.
