The Cleveland Browns find themselves $14.37 million over the 2023 NFL salary cap with the Deshaun Watson contract acting as an albatross.
As of right now, Watson is slated to count a record $54.9 million against the cap in 2023. This is primarily due to general manager Andrew Berry and co. opting for the quarterback to boast a low cap figure in the first year of his fully guaranteed contract.
Watson inked a five-year, $230 million contract with Cleveland after they acquired him from the Houston Texans in a blockbuster trade last March. The deal called for a mere $402,000 base salary due to Watson being suspended 11 games for sexual misconduct allegations.
Fast forward almost a calendar year, and Berry is looking to redo this contract. In speaking to the media at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday, the front office head indicated that restructuring Watson’s contract is certainly in play.
What a restructured Deshaun Watson contract would look like with the Browns
Per Over the Cap, Cleveland could save as much as $33.69 million against the 2023 NFL salary cap if the team were to restructure Watson's contract.
Unfortunately, this move would push back huge cap hits to later years. That could create an unsustainable cap situation for Cleveland moving forward.
The backdrop here was Watson’s lackluster performance after he made his Browns debut late last season. As previously mentioned, the Pro-Bowler was suspended for 11 games in 2022 and sat out for the entire 2021 season with the Texans due to a dispute with the organization.
- Deshaun Watson stats (2022): 58% completion, 1,102 yards, 7 TD, 5 INT, 79.1 QB rating
This came after Watson opened his career by throwing 104 touchdowns against just 36 interceptions in his first four seasons.
As for the Browns’ overall cap situation, it makes sense for the team to push difficult decisions down the road. They are in win-now mode after yielding a huge bounty to acquire Watson in the first place.
It’s in this that Cleveland could save a whopping $69 million against the cap by restructuring the contracts of Watson, DE Myles Garrett, WR Amari Cooper and OG Wyatt Teller.
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