Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Browns TE David Njoku now guaranteed $6.013 million

Cleveland Browns tight end David Njoku warmly welcomed 4:00 pm ET Wednesday and the start of the new NFL year. 

As Mary Kay Cabot wrote for Cleveland.com, the fifth-year option tender worth $6.013 million attached to Njoku's rookie contract became guaranteed Wednesday afternoon. The 24-year-old seemed to celebrate the occasion via Twitter: 

All indications now are that the Browns will keep Njoku through at least the start of the 2021 season, if only because they can't do much else with his rights. He found himself relegated to third on the depth chart at the position ahead of Week 1 last September but stayed with the Browns through and beyond the trade deadline despite his alleged desire to be sent to a different club. 

In total, he recorded 19 receptions for 213 yards and two touchdowns in regular-season play. 

While the Browns technically can still trade Njoku at any point this offseason, there likely won't be much of a market for a player with his numbers and price tag at a time when the salary cap is dropping by nearly $16 million after NFL revenue fell from $16 billion in 2019 to $12 billion in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 

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