CLEVELAND, Ohio. The Browns could soon bring back two of their Pro Bowl players to wide receiver Jarvis Landry and defenseman Jadevon Clooney.
On Saturday, they restructured wide receiver Amari Cooper’s contract to release about $15 million as a cap, giving them more room to re-sign Landry, a five-time pro bowler, and Clooney, a three-time pro bowler. League sources told cleveland.com.
The Browns, who are going all-in to try and win the Super Bowl this season, would love to get both players back, and that’s far more likely now.
The Browns parted ways with Landry last week to save about $15 million in salary caps after granting him trade clearance. But Landry wanted nothing more than to win the Super Bowl here, and he’s motivated to come back now that Deshawn Watson and Cooper are here and the Browns have a real shot.
Clooney, who played with Watson in Houston, is also more likely to return now that his old teammate is on board and the Browns are instant Super Bowl contenders.
The Browns have spoken to both players’ agents and will try to make a deal with them soon. However, they admit that Clooney is acting within his time frame and that he will sign the contract when he is ready.
The Browns converted most of Cooper’s $20 million salary into a signing bonus and added two years to cancel, saving them $15 million on the 2022 limit.
Watson’s ceiling this season is only about $10 million, despite the fact that his five-year, record-breaking $230 million contract is fully guaranteed.
This allows the Browns to keep adding elements around them as they try to lift the Lombardi Trophy this season.
If Landry returns, Watson will invite him, Cooper, Donovan Peoples-Jones, and Anthony Schwartz into the waiting room. The Browns are also likely to select the wide receiver as one of their five picks in the 2nd-4th rounds of the draft. This is a strong class of receivers and they can pick up a starting number in the second round. They can also use some of their spades to trade them for a better perspective.
The Browns never wanted to part ways with 29-year-old Landry, but his $16,379 cap made him cost prohibitive. Buttoning up his lip for much of a busy 2021 season, Landry broke out on Twitter on Feb. 22 as it became apparent the Browns could let him go.
Landry: I gave my all
“The reality behind all of this is that I came back to play in the best shape of my life, I got injured in the second week with a high grade MCL sprain, a partial rupture of the quadriceps and a bruised bone.” he said in a series of tweets. posted on his account on Tuesday morning. “Then he came back too early and ended up injured for the whole season. You never heard me mention it.”
Landry declined to be officially interviewed after his close friend Odell Beckham Jr. was released on November 5 after his father, Odell Beckham Jr., shared a video of “Odell Beckham Jr. Always Open” on his social media. .
His only media appearance after that was during the Thanksgiving food distribution in Parma on November 16, during which he noted, among other things, that his production was due to the fact that he did not have many opportunities, and not the fact that he was brushing off the rust from his injury. He also made it clear that the receivers were doing their best with Baker Mayfield, who played with a torn upper lip on his left shoulder.
“Also my media exposure didn’t happen because I was focused on staying as healthy as possible on the pitch during the week and after the games… there was a strategic plan that had to be followed. I put the ball on the CLE court, telling them that I would like to stay, but if not, then.”
He stressed that he wants to return with the Browns for a fifth season, but understands the realities of the business. He turns 30 in November and has a cap of $16.379 million for 2022 with only $1.5 million in dead money if the Browns let him go.
“I put the ball on the CLE court telling them that I would like to stay, but if not, then I am confident enough to get healthier this year and move forward to help contribute to a championship win elsewhere.”
He also tweeted: “Until this year I have missed 0 games. So push you into storytelling, it’s noted.”
He focused on these four tweets “I GIVE EVERYTHING!!!! ALL.”
As Mayfield struggled for much of the season after tearing his upper lip in week 2, all receivers fell short of performance—and none had more than three TD receptions.
Landry led the club with 52 catches for 570 yards, but both were career lows. His two TDs were also career low, as were his 87 goals. But Landry missed five games, and his 7.25 goals per game would add up to 123 goals in 17 games.
At 4.3 receptions per game, he would have 74 to 17 games, which would be the second lowest of his career after 72 in 2020.
As for Cloney, he hit nine sacks last season after three in the previous nine games. Clony complements Miles Garrett well, and the Browns hope to be done with him soon. Watson’s presence and the extra room for the cap might have expedited the deal.
The Browns may also soon turn their attention to Denzel Ward’s cap-waiver extension.
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