CLEVELAND, Ohio – Kevin Stefanski promised to feel the pain of losing to Kansas City for a while so the team could use it as motivation for the 2021 season, and he encouraged everyone in the organization to do the same.
It won’t be difficult for the Browns and their fans to ask themselves “what if” on Sunday night when they watch the Chiefs face the Bucs in the Super Bowl, as the Browns lost 22-17 to Kansas City in the AFC division round and had an excellent opportunity to take the surprise after Patrick Mahomes left the game with a head problem in the third quarter.
But they have a lot of business to do in the off-season, and with a series of cunning moves, they can get closer to their goal of winning the Super Bowl.
Here is a look at some of them:
1. Exercise Baker Mayfield’s 5th year option for 2022.
The Browns are certain to exercise Mayfield’s fifth-year club option until the May 3 deadline, which will pay him somewhere between $ 18 million to $ 20 million in 2022, depending on how far the the wage ceiling falls in 2021. from $ 175 million – about $ 23 million less than 2020 – it could be more in the $ 18 million range. According to the terms of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, options for the fifth year are automatically guaranteed when exercised, and not just in the case of injury, as it was previously. There are now four different option levels for choices in the first round:
Level 1: Players who did not reach playing time limits in the first three seasons and did not reach the Pro Bowl on the original ballot. They receive on average the salary cap of 3 to 25 highest paid players in the position.
Level 2: Players who have reached the playing time limit but have not reached the Pro Bowl. They receive an average of 3 to 20 highest paid players in their positions.
Level 3: Players who made a Pro Bowl. They receive the proposed transition to the post.
Level 4: Players who made several Pro Bowls. They receive the franchise bid for their position.
Mayfield is at Level 2, which means that in 2022 he will receive an average of 3 to 20 highest paid defenders in his 2021 season, which is expected to fall significantly below the reduced limit of 2021. For comparison, under the former CBA , the QBs chosen from the top 10 of the 2017 draft, who had their options exercised last season, won $ 24,837 in their option year – the transition auction – which was almost $ 2 million the previous year.
Once the Browns choose the option, they can decide whether or not they want to hire him for the long-term extension for which he is eligible in the off-season. But, as we’ve written several times, there are pros and cons to doing this. The option will at least give them some time to make a wise decision, and it is almost a foregone conclusion that they will get it.
2. Exercise Denzel Ward’s 5th year option for 2022
Ward, the Browns’ fourth overall pick in 2018, is in the same boat as Mayfield, with the chance to have his 2022 option year exercised by May 3 and to sign a blockbuster extension for the first time if the Browns choose to go This one.
As Ward arrived at the Pro Bowl as a rookie, he is at Option Level 3, which means that he will receive in 2022 the proposed transition to cornerbacks, which is the average salary of the top 10 players in his position in the 2021 season. transition proposal projected for 2021 to cornerbacks below the reduced limit is $ 12.873 million, down from $ 14.197 million in 2020, so it is not a great year for a player to have their option chosen. If he had kept himself healthy this season and possibly made a second Pro Bowl, he would have received the projected $ 14,885 million franchise proposal.
Once the Browns choose Ward’s fifth-year option, they can also decide whether they want to hire him for their blockbuster extension this off-season, or save big cash payments in a year with tax challenges in terms of subscription and extend it after the 2021 season.
According to spotrac.com, Ward’s market value on a new deal averages around $ 18.5 million, which would put him third on the list, behind Jalen Ramsey ($ 20 million) and Marlon Humphrey ($ 18.5 million).
Again, the Browns can choose Mayfield and Ward’s options and sign both extensions this off-season, or they can postpone one or both extensions, although both are in their long-term plans.
3. Subscribe to Nick Chubb for a creative extension
Chubb, who finished the season with 1,067 yards in 12 games, is in the final year of a contract that pays him $ 1.486 million in 2021, and the Browns may try to hire him for a long term off-season.
It is not the analytical way of giving running backs big long-term extensions, but Chubb means more to the Browns than a typical starting race, and they would like to try to keep it going in the near future.
The problem is that its market value is about $ 12.1 million a year for four years, and the Browns probably won’t want to do a conventional business like that for a running back. Instead, they could try to make a contract full of incentives like the one they did last season with Kareem Hunt, who has line-up bonuses per game and other bonuses that not only pay him, but protect the club in case something doesn’t happen t go as planned.
Chubb’s agents may want him to be the highest-paid NFL in his new deal, which would put him ahead of names like Christian McCaffrey ($ 16.015 million), Ezekiel Elliot ($ 15 million), Le’Veon Bell ( $ 13.125 million), David Johnson ($ 13 million), Derrick Henry ($ 12.5 million) and Joe Mixon $ 12 million, but the Browns may not want to make that kind of long-term commitment to their backs.
If both sides come to a halt, the Browns can let him fulfill his rookie contract and then franchise after the season. For comparison, the projected 2021 franchise bid is $ 10.835 million. If the wage cap recovers after this season, the figure for 2022 may be higher. That would mean a two-year average of about $ 6.5 million, which would be a bargain for Chubb if they couldn’t come to terms.
4. Subscribe or purchase an Edge-Rusher, such as Trey Hendrickson of the Saints or JJ Watt of the Texans
The Browns will likely need to replace Olivier Vernon, who suffered an Achilles tendon tear at the end of the season against the Steelers. He was in the last year of the contract and will be October 31. The Browns tried to improve their position last season with Jadeveon Clowney, and also analyzed Yannick Ngakoue before being traded from Jacksonville to Minnesota and then from Minnesota to Baltimore. Hendrickson, 26, is an intriguing prospect and will be one of the most sought after leading advocates on the market. Hendrickson, chosen for the Saints’ third time in 2017 at the Florida Atlantic, became a full-time starter in 2020 for the first time and responded with 13.5 sacks for second place in the NFL. Santos GM Mickey Loomis, who knows he will have a hard time keeping it, told reporters after the season: “It will be an attractive piece for everyone in the league.” According to spotrac.com, Hendrickson’s market value is around $ 10.3 million over three years, which is well worth it for this type of production, if he continues. The Browns, who offered Clowney more money than anyone in the off-season, have shown that they are willing to pay for the job.
As for Watt, the NFL’s three-time Defensive Player of the Year, allegedly wants to leave Houston, and it might be worth asking about. He is entering the last year of a business that pays him $ 17.5 million, but he may be willing to reduce that number further in the beginning. If none of them, others may be available again, like Clowney and Ngakoue, and Bud Dupree of Pittsburgh, who had eight bags before tearing up his ACL this season, should be free. The Browns, who may also try to negotiate for a pass rusher or draft, need a player like Vernon, who can contribute eight or nine bags against Garrett.
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