Ideally, the Lions would have loved to have Myles Garrett or Maxx Crosby from the Raiders, but they knew they were unattainable. The Browns have no plans to part ways with the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Therefore, they went with the next level of running backs and Smith was their main target.

Asked about cleveland.com On Thursday, whether it would be fun to go to a Super Bowl contender like the Lions, Smith said: “Obviously it would be, but hey, it’s football. “I still get paid.”

The Browns had to weigh draft picks against Smith on the roster for the final eight games of this season, and possibly next year.

With Smith, 32, under contract for next season with a cap hit of just $9.433 million, the Browns didn’t want to give him away. It was a nice compliment to Myles Garrett, who sacked Justin Herbert three times on Sunday to regain the team lead with a 7.0. In the offseason, Smith signed a two-year contract with the Browns worth $23 million, including $12 million guaranteed and an average salary of $11.5 million, a bargain for a player with sack numbers of double digits if it had maintained its current pace.

“Za’Darius is an incredible teammate,” Denzel Ward said. “He is a leader on this team and a playmaker on the field. I love having Za’Darius on the field with me. That was one of my favorite additions to the team when he arrived. He is a great player and a great guy in the locker room. “I definitely appreciate Za’Darius, the player that he is and the person that he is.”

With the Browns falling to 2-7, they will be more likely to part ways with some players they would otherwise hold on to. But big-name players like David Njoku or Greg Newsome II are not expected to trade.

“I mean, Z is my brother,” safety Juan Thornhill said. “He means a lot. Everyone will feel it if he leaves here. It’s going to hurt. He means a lot. He returns there. It brings a lot of energy. He is one of the leaders of our defense, but I wish him nothing but the best. It’s going to be hard. “It’s going to be hard to lose a guy like that.”

Joel Bitonio agreed, especially after Amari Cooper’s trade to Buffalo.

“We already saw a guy leave,” Bitonio said. “It’s tough. It’s not where we want to be. You understand it’s a business in the NFL, but you never want to see the guys you start a season with get traded.”