Another veteran expected to help the Browns make this a Super Bowl contending season will be wearing a different uniform the next time he plays a game. The Browns, around 9 a.m. Nov. 5, seven hours before the trade deadline, shipped 32-year-old defensive end Za’Darius Smith and a 2026 seventh-round pick to the Detroit Lions for a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 sixth-round pick. Last month, General Manager Andrew Berry traded wide receiver Amari Cooper and a 2025 sixth-round pick to the Bills for a 2025 third-round pick and a 2027 seventh-round choice. The Browns are 2-7 and dead last in the AFC North. They and the Jets (3-6) are the NFL’s two most disappointing teams this season, but the Jets have a flicker of hope for the playoffs. The Browns do not, as evidenced by trading two starters for draft picks. The Bills, 7-2, lead the AFC East by four games over the Jets. The Bills believe they can reach the Super Bowl. Cooper has five catches for 69 yards and one touchdown in two games with Buffalo. He is day-to-day with a wrist injury that prevented him from playing against the Dolphins on Nov. 3. The Lions, 7-1, are also thinking Super Bowl. They have a one-game lead over the Vikings in the NFC North. Smith fills a void at defensive end that opened when Aidan Hutchinson suffered a broken leg in a game with the Cowboys on Oct. 13. Smith was the Browns’ leader in sacks with five until Nov. 3 when Myles Garrett sacked Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert three times. Smith played 29 snaps (51 percent) against the Chargers. He was credited with one tackle and a hit on Herbert. Smith has 26 quarterback pressures. Rumors of Smith being traded surfaced over the weekend. Smith was in his second season with the Browns. His teammates on the Browns were hoping the rumors were false. “Z’s my brother, man,” safety Juan Thornhill said. “He means a lot. Everybody’s going to feel it if he’s leaving here. It’s going to hurt. “He brings a lot of energy. He’s one of the leaders of our defense, but I wish nothing but the best for him. It is going to be tough. It’s going to be tough losing a guy like that.” Smith started all nine games for the Browns this season. Ogbo Okoronkwo is expected to take Smith’s place in the starting lineup. The Browns now have nine picks in the 2025 draft – their own picks in round 1-4 and round six plus the Bills’ pick in the third round, the Lions’ pick in the fifth, the Bears’ pick in the sixth and the Vikings’ pick in the sixth round.