The Browns appear set to roster just one lucrative wide receiver contract obtained via trade. After agreeing to acquire Amari Cooper, the Browns have given Jarvis Landry permission to seek a trade, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.
Landry loomed as a departure candidate before Cooper’s arrival, and the Browns are currently $3M-plus over the cap. Landry, with the Browns since 2018, is due a $14.3M base salary in 2022. The Pro Bowl receiver’s contract expires after this coming season.
It is not a lock Landry departs. The longtime Browns pass-catcher is open to staying in Cleveland, per Mike Garafolo of NFL.com. The sides had been discussing a reworked deal, per NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport, but this process has progressed further post-Cooper. It remains likely Landry is done in Cleveland, Garafolo adds.
Cleveland is unlikely to collect much — if anything — for Landry in a trade, but the team would save more than $14M by either trading or cutting the eight-year veteran. Landry, 29, agreed to a five-year, $75.5M extension with the Browns after they traded for him in 2018. He delivered two Pro Bowl seasons in Cleveland and has been Baker Mayfield‘s most consistent target, despite the team giving up far more to acquire Odell Beckham Jr. in 2019. Cooper is now set to fill the role of Mayfield’s (or a to-be-determined replacement’s) No. 1 target.
A former Dolphins second-round pick, Landry is a five-time Pro Bowler. But he averaged just 47.5 receiving yards per game last season, missing five contests during a disappointing Browns season. Landry also did not exceed 1,000 yards in 2020, despite Beckham’s midseason injury. His value has certainly plummeted, pointing to a free-agency trip soon.
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