The Cleveland Browns are set up to be contenders for several years, but they still face some painful financial decisions in the two coming offseasons.
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell authored a deep dive on Monday, January 15 into what lies ahead for the Browns during the coming months and concluded with some certainty that the franchise will part ways with two-time All-Pro right tackle Jack Conklin. Barnwell added that the team will likely ask running back Nick Chubb to accept a decrease in salary.
[Amari] Cooper, [Jedrick] Wills, cornerback Greg Newsome and linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah are all free agents after next season,” Barnwell wrote. “[The Browns] are missing significant draft capital after the trade for [Deshaun] Watson and will be missing multiple cost-controlled starters from their roster, meaning they’ll have to go out and find those guys in free agency.
They’ll likely cut Conklin and ask running back Chubb to take a pay cut this offseason, but this might be the best version of the Browns we see for the next few years if they don’t make any changes.
Jack Conklin Not Healthy Enough to Justify Current Contract with Browns
Conklin was an All-Pro in 2020, his first season with Cleveland after coming over from the Tennessee Titans. However, he has battled significant injuries since.
The Browns’ starting tackle missed all but seven games in 2021 due to serious injuries to both his elbow and knee. Conklin returned the following year and appeared in 14 of 17 contests. However, he suffered MCL and ACL tears in the first half of the team’s season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals in September, which sidelined him for the remainder of the campaign.
Conklin signed a four-year, $60 million extension with the Browns in December 2022, which keeps him under contract through 2026. Cleveland can cut Conklin after June 1, which will cost the team $13 million in dead money and save the Browns nothing against the 2024 salary cap, per Over The Cap. However, the move would save Cleveland $15 million in both 2025 and 2026.
Trading Conklin post-June 1 is the most suitable outcome for the Browns by moving $5.5 million of dead money into the cap-savings category and costing the team $7.5 million in dead money. The savings and dead money on Conklin’s contract over the following four years would remain the same as if Cleveland cuts Conklin this summer.
The issue with a trade, however, is that any team interested would need to assume a hefty contract for a player who has proven incapable of staying on the field over the past three seasons. Conklin will play in 2024, his ninth NFL campaign, at 30 years old.
The Browns also have rookie Dawand Jones on the roster, a fourth-round pick who played well across 11 appearancs in Conklin’s stead before an MCL surgery ended his season, which makes Conklin more expendable.
Browns RB Nick Chubb Entering Final Year of Contract in 2024
Chubb suffered a season-ending knee injury just one game after Conklin, which required two surgeries to repair. The running back earned Pro-Bowl nods in each of the four years prior.
Despite playing at an elite level in Cleveland since entering the league as a second-round draft pick (No. 35 overall) in 2018, Chubb will not be exempt from the harsh financial realities facing the Browns. The 28-year-old running back is playing on a three-year, $36.6 million extension that expires following the 2024 campaign.
Chubb’s counterpart Joe Mixon of the Bengals took a $3 million pay cut to remain in Cincinnati last offseason, while Aaron Jones sacrificed $5 million to remain with the Green Bay Packers.
If Chubb is disinclined to accept a pay decrease, the Browns have an insurance policy in Jerome Ford. The second-year running back put up 813 yards rushing and 4 TDs on the ground to go along with 44 receptions for 319 yards and 5 scores, per Pro Football Reference.
