Texans trade Brock Osweiler to the Browns in a stunning move that may lead to them chasing Tony Romo

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March 9, 2017 8:47 PM

The Texans sent Brock Osweiler and two draft picks to the Cleveland Browns to clear cap space for a potential Tony Romo chase.

brock osweiler

The Houston Texans and Cleveland Browns completed a stunning trade on Thursday to send quarterback Brock Osweiler to Cleveland, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The Texans are also sending a 2018 second-round pick to the Browns in exchange for a 2017 fourth-round pick and salary-cap relief from getting rid of Osweiler's contract.

The cash savings would help Houston chase Tony Romo should he get cut from the Dallas Cowboys, according to Schefter. On Thursday, it was reported that the Cowboys were seeking to trade for Romo rather than cut him; the Texans were said to be interested.

According to Schefter, the move will open up $10 million in salary-cap space and save $16 million in cash for the Texans. Additionally, Schefter reports that Houston was "anxious" to dump Osweiler's contract and move onto its next quarterback.

According to Schefter, the Browns are not interested in keeping Osweiler and are likely to trade him, which would result in an NBA-like transaction in which teams trade bloated contracts to get them off the books — a rare occurrence in the NFL.

It's a fall from grace for Osweiler, who was considered one of the prized free agents last offseason. The Texans pried him away from the Denver Broncos with a four-year, $72 million contract with two years and $36 million guaranteed. In Osweiler's lone year with the Texans, he completed just 59% of his passes for 2,957 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 16 interceptions, with a 72.2 passer rating. In December, Osweiler was benched for backup Tom Savage, and Houston fans gave Savage a standing ovation.

Now it appears Osweiler will be passed around the NFL as teams try to get assets for salary-cap relief.

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