Trade rumors swirled around Cincinnati Bengals backup quarterback AJ McCarron that would have sent the former Crimson Tide signal caller to in-state rival Cleveland. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the deal involved moving McCarron to the Browns in exchange for two undisclosed draft picks, which were later confirmed to be a 2nd and 3rd round pick in the 2018 draft.

According to Schefter, the Browns and Bengals agreed to the deal shortly before this afternoon's trade deadline. The trade information was sent to the league office by Cincinnati, but Cleveland did not. Despite arguments from Cleveland brass that the deal should still be pushed through, NFL officials denied the Browns request.

Despite not playing a snap this season, McCarron's name has swirled in trade rumors since the early part of the 2016 season. In the Bengals 2015 playoff appearance, McCarron fell short of a win against the Indianapolis Colts. McCarron filled in for the final seven games of the 2015 season after starter Andy Dalton went down with injury.

Fortunately for McCarron, his trade to the quarterback wasteland that is Cleveland did not happen. The 0-8 Browns are currently tied with the San Francisco 49ers for the worst record in the league. San Francisco made a deal earlier in the day to acquire backup Patriots quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo leaving Cleveland with arguably the worst situation under center.

After passing on quality starting quarterbacks Carson Wentz, Dak Prescott, and Deshaun Watson in recent drafts in favor of the likes of Cody Kessler and Deshone Kizer (spoiler alert! Kessler and Kizer are bad at football), the Browns organization needed a splashy move to solidify their quarterback situation. With the McCarron deal falling through, the Browns are a near certainty to lock up the #1 overall pick for the second straight year.

AJ McCarron once again gets lucky... Just look at his previous score:

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