The Cleveland Browns have practically been the laughingstock of the NFL since it’s return in 1999.

Today, they basically cemented being it for the immediate and distant future.

Adam Schefter of ESPN reported an hour after the NFL Trade Deadline that the Browns and Bengals reached an agreement on a trade that would send Bengals backup quarterback AJ McCarron to Cleveland.

However the deal didn’t get finalized because the Browns failed to send in the paperwork to the league in time but the Bengals did.

The deal was agreed upon at 3:55 with the deadline at 4:00 pm Eastern.

Originally, Schefter reported that the Browns failed to send the proper paperwork to the league offices but it was however the Bengals. 

League executives told Cleveland reporters that Cleveland sent the paperwork with their signature of approval to Cincinnati but Cincinnati sent another copy of the paperwork with just their signature to the league.

Cleveland appealed to the league to approve the trade but the league rejected it.

The terms of the deal were unknown until Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer reported that the Browns were willing to send a 2018 second and third round pick to the Bengals to acquire McCarron.

There’s been talk that the front office deliberately missed the deadline just to stick it to the coaching staff and Owczarski also reported dysfunction between the front office and coaching staff which has been known for some time.

I’m not even mad the deal didn’t get approved because it’s absurd that Cleveland was willing to deal two high draft picks for McCarron. He looked alright in his three starts at the end of the 2015 regular season but looked abysmal against Pittsburgh in the wild card game almost two years ago.

I understand that Hue Jackson loves the kid and thinks he can be a good quarterback in this league but with the future uncertain with both the front office and coaching staff, he’s not worth giving up that kind of draft capital.

The deal was rejected by the league but whoever thought it was smart to give up a second and third round pick for McCarron should be fired immediately because that’s one of the worst potential deals in the history of football.