Former Ute Paul Kruger reportedly set to sign with Browns

Former University of Utah standout and former member of Super Bowl champion Baltimore is reportedly set to join the Cleveland Browns for five years and roughly $40 million, according to ESPN NFL Insider's Adam Schefter.

Kruger is coming off a career year with the Ravens, picking up a total of 13.5 sacks, 4.5 of which came in the playoffs.

Those numbers, however, meant a pay raise Baltimore was reluctant to give, leaving Kruger available to be snatched up by teams more enamored with his skill set.

The Browns, coming off a 5-11 season and with new head coach Rob Chudzinski at the helm, chased Kruger the hardest and it appears it will pay off — for both sides.

Cleveland, already a top-10 team in pass defense and overall defense last season, would ideally go from good-to-great on that side of the ball, though plenty of work remains to be done for the Browns to make significant improvement.

As for Kruger, he joins what is quickly becoming an exodus of significant players from the reigning Super Bowl champions. Baltimore has already shipped wide receiver Anquan Boldin to San Francisco after a similarly successful playoff performance.

Matt Petersen is the Sports Web editor for DeseretNews.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @TheMattPetersen.