4 Browns Players Who Could Still Be Due For A Contract Restructure
Three Browns players have already had their contracts restructured this offseason in an effort to create cap space for Andrew Berry's offseason plans.
Top cornerback Denzel Ward, starting left tackle Jedrick Wills and new wide receiver Jerry Jeudy have all seen their contracts re-worked in recent weeks. Combined, those moves freed up more than $30 million in cap space for Cleveland and more could be on the way.
Whether Berry has a lot more planned this offseason or not, he has generally tried to create a buffer of cap space prior to the season that rols over into additional cap space the following year. With that in mind, more restructures are likely on the way. Here are four other Browns players potentially due for restructures this offseason.
1) Nick Chubb
This one is pretty much inevitable. Berry has reiterated numerous times that the team doesn't want to see Chubb's Cleveland career come to an end with the image of him being carted off the field in Pittsburgh with a gruesome knee injury.
That said, his base salary number for next season is more than $11 million and the Browns could turn that into cap savings if they flat out released the veteran running back. There's no a high probability of that happening though so if keeping Chubb is the priority they'll have to rethink the math on his deal. Maybe it comes in the form of a short extension, maybe it's just converting some of that base salary into signing bonus and pushing it into a voided year in 2025. Whatever the case may be, it's almost a certainty Chubb won't be playing this fall under the current iteration of his deal.
2) Amari Cooper
Cooper is another obvious restructure candidate with a base salary figure of $20 million for this upcoming season. Like Chubb, Cooper's situation is clouded by what his future holds. How much money does Berry want to potentially kick into voided years if Cooper isn't on the roster beyond this season. I think there's a good chance the two sides could be talking extension though and that would make a restructure that much easier if it actually comes to fruition. Either way, don't be surprised if Cooper's deal gets reworked at some point.
3) Jack Conklin
Conklin is an interesting one because his deal is sort of an albatross on the Browns cap at the moment. The emergence of Dawand Jones last season makes leaves plenty some doubts over his status on the offensive line. Complicating matters is that his base salary number isn't massive for next year, coming in around $4.5 million. There's also no "easy out" per sé on Conklin's deal until after the 2025 season really.
The 29-year-old already carries a dead cap hit near $30 million that can be spread out over multiple years if Cleveland parted ways with him now. Prior to the 2025 campaign that number lowers to $17 million. The question becomes, how much more option bonus money does Berry want to pump into Conklin's contract without much clarity on his future over the final three years of his current deal.
4) Deshaun Watson
For obvious reasons Watson ends up on this list. Boasting a massive $63 million cap hit for next season, including a $46 million base salary number, Watson's contract is a land of opportunity for Berry to create cap space if he so wishes.
Berry already restructured his deal once last offseason and added a voided year that spreads out the payments in increments of $8.9 million over the next five seasons. As the 28-year-old QB returns from shoulder surgery though, if Berry or the Browns have any doubts about his ability moving forward it may actually behoove them to bite the bullet now and eat that massive chunk of his contract. For book keeping purposes, Watson is still owed more than $200 million the less of that Cleveland has to kick down the road or into voided years the better.
