CLEVELAND (AP) — Odell Beckham Jr. is about to run a deep route out of New Jersey — straight to Cleveland.The superstar wide receiver is bound for the Browns to be a target for quarterback Baker Mayfield as the centerpiece of a blockbuster trade http://www.jacksonvillejaguarsteamonline.com/gardner-minshew-ii-jersey , two people familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Tuesday night.The Browns are sending first- and third-round picks this year along with safety Jabrill Peppers to the Giants for Beckham, one of the NFL’s top players, said the people who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because league rules prohibit teams from announcing trades until 4 p.m. Wednesday.The deal is conditional on both players passing physicals.With the Browns, Beckham will be reunited with receiver Jarvis Landry, a close friend and teammate at LSU. He’ll also give Mayfield an elite weapon, and his arrival could vault the Browns, who went 7-8-1 last season after not winning a game in 2017, into legitimate championship contenders.Rumors of a possible deal have swirled for weeks, with several Browns players teasing a major move by Cleveland general manager John Dorsey on social media. Dorsey pulled it off, bringing a major talent to accelerate his attempt to rebuild the Browns into consistent winners. Cleveland hasn’t been to the playoffs since 2002.The trade is the second major one involving a star wide receiver in four days as the Pittsburgh Steelers recently sent Antonio Brown to the Oakland Raiders.While Beckham is immensely talented, there is some baggage as he can be temperamental and difficult. He was suspended for one game for his on-field battles with Carolina cornerback Josh Norman. He also comes off two injury-plagued years. Before last season, he became the league’s highest-paid receiver with a five-year, $90 million contract extension.He played five seasons in New York, making the Pro Bowl in his first three. He was the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2014.It’s the second trade completed in the past week by the Giants and Browns. Cleveland sent guard Kevin Zeitler to New York for edge rusher Olivier Vernon, who will now play on the opposite side of Pro Bowler Myles Garrett.The Giants had been reluctant to trade Beckham, with GM Dave Gettleman insisting over the past few months that the club did not sign him to the historic deal in late August to trade him. But the Browns were persistent and Dorsey, who has remolded the Browns since coming to Cleveland at the end of 2017, came up with a package the Giants simply couldn’t resist.“John Dorsey is officially a genius…” tweeted Browns defensive back Damarious Randall.And now new Browns coach Freddie Kitchens has another playmaker for Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick last year who had a dazzling debut season in which he set the NFL record for touchdown passes by a rookie.Kitchens will have to try to keep Beckham in check http://www.losangelesramsteamonline.com/darrell-henderson-jersey , something Giants coach Pat Shurmur struggled to do. Early last season, with the Giants off to another bad start, Beckham seemed upset with his role in Shurmur’s new offense and said quarterback Eli Manning was not capable of throwing deep passes.Mayfield and Beckham are already tight; they spent part of last summer working out in California with Landry, who has been campaigning since he arrived in Cleveland for his former college teammate to join him.When news of the agreement broke, Mayfield posted a photo on Twitter of him shaking hands with Beckham. “Movement” was the caption.In the aftermath of Beckham’s shocking exit from New York, Browns wide receiver Breshad Perriman asked Cleveland to void his agreement on a one-year, $4 million contract. The Browns obliged and the sides mutually decided to cancel the deal struck earlier in the day.Perriman, who revived his career with Cleveland last season, then agreed to sign a one-year package with Tampa Bay, a person with knowledge of the deal told AP.Dorsey has had a busy offseason, signing troubled running back Kareem Hunt to a one-year contract, trading for Vernon and agreeing to a three-year, $39 million deal with defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson.Landing Beckham is his signature move, a signal that he believes the Browns are on the verge of a Super Bowl run.Many were expecting the Giants to take a step forward after going 5-11 in Shurmur’s first season. They were looking to improve their offensive line, get some pass rushers and shore up the defense, which struggled in coordinator James Bettcher’s switch to a 3-4 front.In the past week, the next step has turned into a rebuild.Vernon was dealt, and the team did not put a franchise tag on safety Landon Collins. Instead, the catalyst of the defense and leading tackler each of the last four seasons is about to sign with NFC East rival Washington.With the trade of Beckham http://www.minnesotavikingsteamonline.com/irv-smith-jr.-jersey , the offense has lost its top playmaker, although one could argue the Giants started shifting that role to halfback Saquon Barkley last season. Barkley beat out Mayfield for Offensive Rookie of the Year.Complicating the situation: The Giants haven’t figured out their quarterback situation. Manning is 38 and the team has only made the playoffs once since winning the Super Bowl in February 2012.But the Giants have three of the top 37 draft picks in April, and 12 overall. They have their eye on taking a franchise quarterback, perhaps Oklahoma Heisman Trophy Kyler Murray or Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins.Peppers, who is from New Jersey, will help fill the void left by Collins’ departure. A first-round pick in 2017, he struggled as a rookie but bounced back and played well last season. CINCINNATI (AP) — The previous time the Bengals tried to stop Baker Mayfield, he set a Browns rookie record with four touchdown passes in little more than half a game. He also gave a cold shoulder to his former head coach while leaving the field.The Bengals are looking for anything positive at the end of another bad season. Containing Mayfield on Sunday would qualify.Cincinnati (6-8) has been eliminated from playoff contention for the third season in a row. It’s the intrastate rival Browns (6-7-1) who are barely still in contention with two games left, emerging from their historically bad run of losses as their rookie quarterback grows up a little more each week — and builds a reputation, too.Asked what Mayfield does best, cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick had an immediate answer.“Talk,” Kirkpatrick said Wednesday.“Naw, he’s cool,” the cornerback added. “I like to see that out of young guys. He definitely gets in guys’ heads. That’s what this game is about.”He sure got into the Bengals’ heads on Nov. 25.Mayfield led the Browns to touchdowns on their first four chances, including a 96-yard drive. He was barely touched while going 17 of 22 for 245 yards in the first half, when the Browns piled up 296 yards.Up 35-7 early in the second half, the Browns essentially ran out the clock. Mayfield threw only four passes in the second half, one of them for a touchdown, as Cleveland finished off a 35-20 win .It was the Bengals’ second game since coach Marvin Lewis fired defensive coordinator Teryl Austin and assumed the role. The defense has been better lately against lesser opponents. The Bengals ended a five-game losing streak Sunday with a 30-16 win over the Raiders http://www.newyorkgiantsteamonline.com/dexter-lawrence-jersey , who were missing both starting guards.The defense finally looked more like Lewis had hoped.“It hasn’t been easy,” said rookie defensive end Sam Hubbard, who had two sacks on Sunday. “We’ve been trying to address a lot of issues in practice.”It’s difficult to quantify how much of an effect Hue Jackson’s had on the defense. The Browns fired him as head coach after Cleveland got only two wins in the first eight games. Lewis quickly hired his close friend as a special assistant on defense, Jackson’s third stint on Lewis’ staff.Jackson helps create the defensive game plan and is on the sideline during games, offering Lewis advice when needed. He also talks to players on the sideline about adjustments that need to be made.Jackson will be a focal point on the sideline Sunday in Cleveland, where he won only three games in two-plus seasons. He’s kept a low profile in Cincinnati not only with the media but also with players, trying to be careful not to infringe upon the other assistant coaches’ areas.He was in the spotlight when the Browns visited last month. Safety Damarious Randall intercepted a pass by the Bengals sideline and handed the ball to Jackson , who patted him on the helmet. After the game, Jackson sought out Mayfield, but the rookie didn’t want to talk.Jackson’s decision to join an AFC North rival and plot to beat the Browns didn’t go over well with some of his former players. His current ones don’t want to get into it.“I don’t care about that,” Kirkpatrick said. “He was their coach. Their might have been something personal. I don’t know. I’m not going to get into it.“You’ll have to ask Hue.”Jackson? He’s not talking.BOYD SIDELINEDReceiver Tyler Boyd topped 1,000 yards in the win over the Raiders, but hurt his right knee late in the first half and didn’t return. He was held out of practice Wednesday, an indication he’s unlikely to play in Cleveland. Linebacker Jordan Evans (ankle) also missed practice.BURFICT RETURNSLinebacker Vontaze Burfict returned to practice on a limited basis after missing the past two games with a concussion. Right tackle Cordy Glenn (back), running back Joe Mixon (wrist) and receiver John Ross (knee) also were limited.