We are two months and two days away from the "legal tampering" portion of the Free Agency Period, with the league year starting 2 days after that on March 16th. 1) What do we do with out current free agents, that we can start signing NOW to keep positions from acquiring holes? 2) Who do you like in free agency to fill vacated holes and/or upgrade current positions? Bear in mind the Browns currently have $37.47M in cap space and as @SAS has already mentioned, we have some in house free agents that need taken care of or replaced.
The Browns could free up $21M in cap space by moving on from Jarvis Landry and Jack Conklin I like both of these players, BUT Conklin may not be ready to play until next December and even then you won't know what version of Conklin you will be getting back. Jarvis is making $16,600,000 this season, we could save $15.1M by moving on. I love his leadership, but his production may not live up to his salary at this point of his career. If we are paying north of $30M to a QB (Baker is $18.86M this year and will probably get close to $30M if he is successful this season), then the QB needs to be the "why" when receivers succeed. Jarvis was brought in when we had nothing at QB and needed extraordinary players to make up for the pitfall at QB. If we are going to pay Baker, he needs to prove he can make those around him better, not have players around him to make him look better. This is a make or break year for Baker. But it's also a make or break year for the offense as a whole. We need to start replacing money players in the draft, otherwise, we will always be a mediocre team as players like Mayfield start getting paydays. I think we need to draft a top tier WR and replace Landry with someone like Christian Kirk, who will be a complimentary receiver and if we are all being honest, similar to what Landry brings to the table..At a discounted price. At the same time, they need in house receivers to develop also. We will definitely need to upgrade the RT position with Conklin's future uncertain
We need to keep in mind the holes that may need filled. Starting with question one above, what do we do with our own free agents? UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS RED=Should make real attempt to re-sign, Blue=Would be nice to re-sign, but can be replaced depending on what they are asking, Black=Just let it go (Players are free to negotiate with other teams.) Jadeveon Clowney (Might have been his finest season since leaving Houston, important for the run defense to re-sign him) Dustin Colquitt Ronnie Harrison (Stepped in when needed and doesn't look lost out there) Chris Hubbard (The best of the mediocre backups, I don't want him as a starter, nor to give him starter money, but he knows the scheme and can multiple spots when needed) Rashard Higgins (It's just time.. We have never learned the specifics of the dog house, but he has lived in it for two years, so he obviously doesn't learn from his mistakes. Malik Jackson (At his age, he needs to be part of a rotation, but he does have value) Takk McKinley (Had some bright spots and disappeared sometimes, again, bargain money I want him back) David Njoku (Best TE option on the team by far, possibly even in free agency. This is a must re-sign imho. It would be hard to replace him and should only demand about 6.5-7M per year.) Malcolm Smith MJ Stewart Anthony Walker. I think we need to re-sign either Malcolm Smith or Anthony Walker, my preference being Walker. Hindsight.. Austin Hooper was a bad signing. I hope we can sign Njoku for less than Hooper signed, but if he is looking for above market value, they may need to move on and possibly change their scheme to be less reliant on TE. We can't move on from Hooper, so that limits our options. RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS (Players can negotiate with other teams, but there are restrictions on their ability to sign contracts.) Stephen Carlson D’Ernest Johnson (2nd round tender, imo) Chase McLaughlin (4 of 10 made FGs between 40-49 yards tells you all you need to know) Ifeadi Odenigbo (Right of first refusal) EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS FREE AGENTS (If the player’s original team offers him a contract, the player cannot negotiate with other teams.) Malik McDowell Blake Hance Michael Dunn Opinions are welcome....
Looking above, this is what we NEED, assuming we don't re-sign anyone: DE - imperative if they don't re-sign Clowney and McKinley, get them both back and this gets taken off the list of free agency and moves to a medium need for the draft. RT - There isn't a scenario that we don't need a RT, either through free agency spending money or the first two rounds of the draft. There is no one on this team that can play professionally at this time. WR - This becomes even more glaring if they decide to move on from Jarvis Landry TE - Assuming Njoku doesn't re-sign, they will either need to find a good replacement or change their scheme completely. DT - We had a nice rotation this past season, problem is Malik Jackson was a part of that rotation. Malik McDowell will be back and will play a part in 2022 for sure. LB - This is a work in progress anyway, but if they were to lose MJ Stewart and Anthony Walker, it becomes a top priority QB - We need a stronger backup imho. I like Case Keenum and what he brought in knowledge of the system, but despite winning two games, his weaknesses were evident. Kicker and Punter - Very important they pay attention to these positions and not just put the best of what's left over in their place. It isn't a terrible list..Each become less important with key in house signings. Imagine signing those in red (if you do, that means you moved on from Landry and probably Jack Conklin as well, freeing up $21M in cap space) The list now reads: WR RT LB QB Kicker Punter A little easier to manage
Possible free agents: WR Mike Williams, price tag most likely $17M/year Allen Robinson, price tag most likely $16M/year Michael Gallup, price tag most likely $14M/year Christian Kirk, price tag most likely $12M/year RT Not much, unless you want to over pay for a left tackle and either talk him into playing the right side or move Jed Wills over to RT, which he played in college Morgan Moses, price tag most likely $7.5M/year Trent Brown, price tag most likely $10M/year Probably looking at the draft QB Marcus Mariota, price tag most likely $8M one year deal LB Alexander Johnson, price tag most likely $7M/year Leighton Vander Esch, price tag most likely $8.5M/year Anthony Barr, price tag most likely $8.5M/year Josey Jewell, price tag most likely $6M/year Kyzer White, price tag most likely $5M/year Not much
Priority free agent #1 - to the point of franchise tagging him, in my opinion. Finding a running mate to pair with Garrett (who'll be entering his sixth season) has been challenging and the team would have to spend their first round pick to try and replicate the output Clowney gave us this season. It'll be costly, but he needs re-signed. Priority free agent #2 - again, perhaps en route to a tag if necessary. Paying him market will have the Browns investing more in the TE position than 18 other NFL teams spend on their wide receiver room, but if Stefanski truly needs tight ends to make his offense go, then he needs the best one back in the fold and we need to see that output from the group as a whole in 2022. Priority free agent #3 - watching the other linemen try in his absence was not only painful to watch, it was painful on our franchise QB who took unnecessary abuse on the right side, regressed in both pocket presence/awareness and processing speed, and undoubtedly also impacted his mechanics (the shoulder injury obviously played the largest role here). Hubbard can start at virtually any position along the line and as we saw last season, that flexibility is a must for a team contending for a Super Bowl. As for the rest... Takk McKinley: with the Achilles injury, he's probably out for most of 2022 as well, if he were retained. He added a nice change-of-pace at the rotation, but I have to believe that output can be found in the mid-rounds of the draft. If he were going to be healthy to start the season I would offer him a deal, but he's probably not going to be back that early. Malik Jackson: re-signed, if only to limit the needs added during free agency period. Anthony Walker Jr.: my preference to re-sign at the LB spot (over Malcolm Smith). He called the defensive plays at times, held up well in pass coverage, and again -- it would create a need at an already thin spot. Rashard Higgins: I love him, but it's time to move on. M.J. Stewart: if I had a priority free agent #4, this would be it. Stewart played really well last season and with all three of our starter-caliber corners (Ward, Newsome, Williams) missing time every year they've entered the league, I think having another reliable body is going to be paramount. Malcolm Smith: nice player, but I think we keep Walker. Dustin Colquitt: terrible... time to address the position in the draft. Ifeadi Odenigbo: actually not a bad idea to keep -- likely a lower-value contract on a shorter-term basis for a player who can give you some relief at the position and maybe slide into that role Takk McKinley played. Montrel Meander: safety position could be an issue but I don't see Meander being a difference-maker there. Stephen Carlson: gone. Ronnie Harrison: gone, probably. He's a tough case because sometimes he's out there flashing big play ability and other times he's giving zero effort, committing costly penalties, or simply out of position. With Johnson and Delpit in the backfield as starters, I think the team can look to the draft to get a rotational player here. Hjalte Froholdt: Naga-na- Chase McClaughlin: gone -- upgrade in the draft. Michael Dunn: gone -- upgrade in free agency. Blake Hance: gone -- upgrade in free agency. Malik McDowell: ouch... tough situation with the news around him today. I'd have gone "priority free agent #5" here, but he's likely gone facing suspension or league discipline. D'Ernest Johnson: tag with a second-round restricted option and let someone offer up draft picks for the guy. If not, sign him to a short-term deal to back up Chubb/Hunt.
Here's my gold star player in free agency. Maybe it was watching him torch a hapless Joe Woods defense early on, but Williams is one of those guys who definitely didn't live up to his draft status but has the tools you look for in that deep threat area. While I think Anthony Schwartz may have been drafted for that due to his speed, his play left a TON to be desired. Williams (6'4") has something no current Browns receiver has, which is height. He can win downfield and in the redzone as a result of that. Ideally at the wide receiver spot, I would love to see the Browns: Sign Mike Williams in free agency Re-work and extend Jarvis Landry on a 5-year deal Draft a prospect who's scouting report can be condensed down to: runs elite routes As I mentioned in the other '2022' thread, Andrew Berry has taken the weakness of the team from the prior season and turned it into a strength very quickly. These moves above (especially if that prospect is Chris Olave) would certainly give the Browns' receiver room a tremendous boost.
That's coming. Landry makes too much...I'd love to keep him around another year or so, but Jarvis is making bank that doesn't match production.
Oh, absolutely. I think his gets done before the regular season starts. I think Baker's isn't inked until mid-way through 2022 at the earliest and probably not until after the season.
It's a given he wouldn't come cheap as his estimated market value is about the same as we were paying OBJ, but I really think of the higher end UFA receivers in this year's group, Chris Godwin would be a great fit in this offense, and he's only 25...Not sure if the Browns are going to pursue any top F/A receivers, but if they did decide to go that route, he'd be at the top of my wish list.
My wish list is all internal, I think. If we could wake up on the first day of the new league year and just see these roll in... Denzel Ward - 6 year extension David Njoku - 5 year extension Jadeveon Clowney - 4 year extension Malik Jackson - 3 year extension M.J. Stewart - 3 year extension Chris Hubbard - 2 year extension Anthony Walker Jr. - 2 year extension D'Ernest Johnson - exclusive rights tag @ second-round compenstation Chase McLaughlin - released Britton Colquitt - released Austin Hooper - released (hey, a guy can dream)
Just a few days away from FA frenzy....We need to bring two of our dawgs back. Wish list: Allen Robinson, Emmanuel Ogbah, DJ Chark, Larry Ogunjobi....
I'm not certain of that, but I love the move in any event. Berry addressed the situation in necessary fashion. Now we just need to add the finishing touch...
