NEW YORK — Last season, Jets wide receiver Elijah Moore requested to be traded.
On Wednesday, he finally got his wish.
The Browns acquired Moore and a third-round pick (No. 74 overall) from the Jets in exchange for a second-round pick (No. 42 overall), according to a source. Gang Green parted ways with Moore minutes after the team agreed to a one-year contract with Mecole Hardman.
Moore will head to Cleveland after an eventful two seasons in New York. After being selected in the second round of the 2021 NFL draft, Moore recorded 43 catches for 538 yards and five touchdowns during his rookie season. His second season was full of off-field turmoil.
Following a 27-10 victory at Green Bay last October, Moore was targeted zero times by quarterback Zach Wilson. Hours after the game, Moore quote tweeted a Twitter post confirming the lack of targets in the matchup.
“If I say what I really wanna say … I’ll be the selfish gu y…we winning,” Moore said in a deleted tweet. “Grateful! Huge blessing! All I ever wanted. Bittersweet for me, but I’ll be solid. So I’ll just stay quiet. Just know I don’t understand either.”
Things didn’t get better for Moore the next week as he reportedly had a verbal disagreement with then-Jets offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur during practice. Moore was sent home, but Jets coach Robert Saleh told reporters the second-year player was excused from practice to deal with a “family matter.”
Shortly after that, Moore sent out a series of cryptic tweets.
“God, I need direction,” Moore sent in a now-deleted tweet. He also tweeted, “God makes no mistakes…I trust u through it AllllllI.”
After he was sent home from practice, Moore requested the Jets to trade him. Saleh and the Jets refused to grant Moore’s request as he didn’t travel to Denver with the Jets in their 16-9 Week 7 victory against the Broncos.
Moore played the following week in a 22-17 loss to the Patriots as he told reporters he regretted how he handled the situation.
“What happened with me, I can’t change that,” Moore said. “I just wish it didn’t cause so much of a distraction for my teammates.
“It is what it is, things that happen behind the scenes that people really don’t know about. It isn’t all necessarily bad, but there are a lot of conversations that need to stay in house.
“I feel good about where I’m at. I check in with the same preparation as I did before. I put my best foot forward.”
Saleh continued to say Moore was a big part of the Jets' offense, but that never translated to the field. He finished the season with 37 catches for 446 yards and one touchdown. Halfway through last season, Moore only caught one pass in four games.
With the addition of Allen Lazard and Hardman, Moore’s touches were likely to diminish in the Jets system with new offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett. The Jets also still have Garrett Wilson, Corey Davis and Denzel Mims on their roster.
Gang Green has had interest in potentially signing Odell Beckham Jr., but it’s unknown if Hardman’s signing will preclude them from doing so.
