There were two questions that the Cleveland Browns had to address with the prospect of signing Jack Conklin to a contract extension. The first was their belief in the health of his knee, which they answered in the affirmative by signing Conklin to this deal. The second was how they could structure the deal. Those financial details are now available.
As expected, the Browns deferred money to the latter part of the deal. More cap space now allows them the ability to keep increasing their adjusted cap limit. That is the strategy the team has been employing to pay out so much in salaries to this team compared to other teams around the league.
The team is also leaning into the idea that a massive increase in league revenue is going to provide a dramatic increase to the salary cap over the next several seasons.
If the first two years look higher than some of the other extensions the Browns have worked out over the last year, there's an important reason for that. Conklin's previous deal was scheduled to have two void years of $3 million. Had he left via free agency, the Browns would have incurred $6 million in dead cap for the 2023 season. Since they signed him to a new contract, those void years simply follow the schedule of paying $3 million each of those two seasons, added in to his prorated signing bonus.
However, the Browns aren't adding new money, so they are effectively paying Conklin $1.962 million in new money the first year. That number is ideal for the Browns for all of the reasons mentioned previously. Like Conklin's first contract, this one also includes two void years. Conklin will be under contract until 2026, when he will be 32 years old. In 2027, the Browns are scheduled to incur $5.537 million in dead cap from the void years.
The Browns could theoretically move on from Conklin after two years. They'd have to eat $14.471 million but it nevertheless possible. It would save them $28 million in salary over two years. That would likely require a disaster to take place because they'd be paying him more to leave than to play in 2025. Even though the reported deal was announced with $31 million, it's far more likely Conklin will receive all of it.
Conklin's deal runs through 2026. Both Wyatt Teller and Joel Bitonio are signed through 2025 with the extensions they signed. Deshaun Watson being the centerpiece of the Browns for the foreseeable future, he will not be lacking for protection on the offensive line.
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