Report: 49ers & Browns Discussed Trade Involving OLB Ahmad Brooks

Jay Galzer of Fox Sports is reporting that the 49ers and Browns actually discussed a trade that would have sent OLB Ahmad Brooks to Cleveland, but San Francisco ultimately elected to pass on the offer.

• Glazer adds that the Browns were offering a mid-round draft pick in return for Brooks.

There actually wasn’t much buzz regarding Brooks being available before the trade deadline this past week, so it’s interesting to hear that a move was almost made.

Previous reports indicated that the 49ers were willing to part ways with OLB Corey Lemonier as well, but nothing came of this.

Brooks, 30, is in the third year of his six-year, $37 million contrac that included $8.25 million guaranteed. San Francisco restructured his contract back in July and created $2 million in cap space.

This move dropped his 2014 cap figure from $6.6 million to around $4.5 million, but also boosted his future cap figures to: $9.6M (2015), $9.6M (2016) and $8.6M (2017).

This season, Brooks has appeared in seven games and recorded 16 tackles, three sacks, and a pass defense. However, Pro Football Focus has him rated as the second worst outside linebacker in a 3-4 system among qualifying players.