Well the fact that the Browns 3rd overall pick was a washout shows the Browns are not geniuses. They got lucky that they were able to fetch a first round pick from a team that was willing to pay a WHOLE LOT more than the true value of the player to find the missing piece to becoming a Super Bowl contender. I honestly wouldn't have given more than a 5th round pick for Richardson. However, since the Colts were desperate, they were willing to send over a first round pick, and they were gauging the fact that they believed they were Super Bowl contenders. Luckily for the Colts, it was not a big waste, because as a result of the trade, Donald Brown stepped up his game and was able to fill the missing gap that the Colts had, basically taking the spot that Richardson was supposed to fill.
So in all, both sides were EXTREMELY lucky. There was no genius in this case because the Browns were stupid to draft him, and VERY lucky to be able to ship him off for a first. However, that first round pick will definitely be a late first rounder, and knowing the Browns in the first round, they should just trade the pick for Kirk Cousins. The Colts wasted their first rounder in terms of the trade, because they got crap for a first round pick, however they were saved from complete embarrassment by Donald Brown coming up with the save. So the winners are definitely the Colts. Though Brown saved them, they are in the playoffs and are a whole lot closer to winning the Super Bowl than the Browns.
I know that this was an old post of yours, but i realized that after i wrote this up, so I'm gonna post it anyway