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Home > Blogs > Dawging the Browns > Archives > 2008 > July > 24
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Bodden gets his deal from Lions
Leigh Bodden never struck me as a malcontent, but apparently he wasn’t entirely happy with the Browns before being traded to the Detroit Lions.
“I just wanted a long-term deal and they wanted me to wait a year,” Bodden told The Associated Press on Thursday. “I told them I thought I deserved it right now.”
Bodden, a cornerback who led the Browns with six interceptions last season, has agreed to a four-year, $27 million contract extension with the Lions, the NFL Network reported Thursday.
His current deal, signed after the 2005 season, had two more years to run, which pretty much explains why the Browns wanted to wait a year.
Ultimately, Bodden was swapped with a 2008 third-round draft pick for defensive tackle Shaun Rogers — a trade that already has drawn plenty of scrutiny and will continue to be analyzed to death if the Browns don’t pick up the pace on defense this season.
Some think the Browns weakened themselves considerably by trading their most experienced corner, one of the few in the league to win the respect of mouthy Bengals receiver Chad Johnson.
The trade, coupled with the injury to Daven Holly, did leave the Browns short at a key position. However, they were desperate for help up front and Rogers, when his mind is right and his weight is stable, can be a force.
If I’m Phil Savage, I’d do it again in a heartbeat.
