The Cleveland Browns traded cornerback Jason McCourty to the New England Patriots on Thursday Jim Kelly Bills Jersey , reuniting him with his brother Devin. The Browns also sent a seventh-round pick to the Patriots to get a sixth-rounder in return.

”Cleveland it’s been real!” Jason McCourty wrote on the Twitter account the brothers share. ”I wish nothing but the best to the guys in that locker room!”

The Browns have been one of the most active teams in the NFL this offseason as they try to rebuild from last season’s 0-16 record. They have already traded for quarterback Tyrod Taylor and three-time Pro Bowl receiver Jarvis Landry, while signing seven free agents, including running back Carlos Hyde.

They also made a deal on Wednesday to send defensive lineman Danny Shelton to New England for a third-round pick in 2019. But the defending AFC champion Patriots have mostly been losing players, including receiver Danny Amendola, left tackle Nate Solder, defensive back Malcolm Butler and running back Dion Lewis.

After spending his first eight seasons with Tennessee, Jason McCourty Marcedes Lewis Youth Jersey , 30, started 14 games and led the Browns with three interceptions and made 65 tackles last season, the most for any player in the secondary.

He became a locker room leader, but also ruffled feathers by saying the team never should have gone winless after both coach Hue Jackson and new general manager John Dorsey bemoaned the team’s lack of talent.

”The talent in this locker room is not the talent to go win a Super Bowl this year, but this locker room is far more talented than 0-16,” Jason McCourty said following the season-ending loss in Pittsburgh.

”I’m kind of tired of hearing so many people say, even within the organization Vontaze Burfict Jersey , is we don’t have the guys or we need more guys. Let’s work with the guys we do have and find ways to win games.”

Also Thursday, the Patriots re-signed running back Rex Burkhead. A 2013 sixth-round draft pick who spent his first four seasons with the Bengals, Burkhead has run for 639 yards and eight touchdowns and caught 64 passes for 542 yards and four touchdowns in his career.

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The NFL has fined former Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson $2.75 million following its investigation into sexual and racial misconduct in the workplace.

The league said Thursday the investigation conducted by former U.S. Attorney Mary Jo White substantiated the allegations against Richardson, that the improper conduct was limited to him and that the team and its ownership failed to report the allegations or any resolution agreements to the league.

The league also said most of the money will go toward organizations that address racial- and gender-based issues in and outside the workplace.

Richardson put the team up for sale after a Sports Illustrated report in December that Richardson made sexually suggestive comments to women and on at least one occasion directed a racial slur at an African-American Panthers scout. The report also stated that the settlements came with non-disclosure requirements forbidding the parties from discussing the details.

Richardson has an agreement to sell the Panthers for a league-record $2.2 billion to hedge fund president and owner David Tepper. The league owners unanimously approved the sale last month, and NFL officials said the sale is expected to close in the next two weeks. Tepper is a former minority owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Coach Ron Rivera declined to comment Thursday on Richardson’s fine when reached by The Associated Press. General manager Marty Hurney did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

White, who was appointed by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell as the independent investigator, said her findings and recommendations are the product of a review that included interviews with team executives Braden Smith Colts Jersey , former and current employees, document analysis and electronic records.

White states that the Panthers’ anti-harassment and discrimination policy should help prevent a recurrence, and she and Goodell recommend the team report on its internal policies and procedures that address racial discrimination and sexual harassment claims, as well as related workplace issues, by the end of the year.

She also recommended the league prohibit non-disclosure agreements to limit the reporting of potential violations or cooperation with league investigations, require workplace misconduct claims to be reported to the league office, establish a confidential hotline for league and team employees to report workplace conduct issues and review policies and procedures with owners Quenton Nelson Colts Jersey , team counsel and human resource executives.

The NFL said the recommendations will be presented to the league’s Conduct Committee before the coming season.

NFL officials have said they didn’t know about the allegations against Richardson until Dec. 15, the same day the Panthers issued a stunning news release first announcing its own investigation of Richardson’s alleged workplace misconduct. That was followed two days later by the Sports Illustrated report that detailed Richardson’s alleged misconduct and also by the announcement that Richardson would sell the team he founded.

The Panthers also promoted Tina Becker to chief operating officer in the wake of the investigation.

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AP Sports Writer Steve Reed contributed to this report.

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