Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry did some standard salary cap work on Wednesday as it pertained to the contract of defensive end Myles Garrett.
But since it is the Browns and the league’s best defensive player, this routine bit of paperwork apparently must have a deeper meaning to it. Unless, of course, it does not.
Here is what we know, according to a report from ESPN’s Field Yates:
- The two sides have agreed to move the date that Garrett will be paid his option bonus from the 15th day of the league year to a week before the regular season’s first game. That covers 2026, 2027, and 2028.
- Garrett agreed to have $8 million of his base salary converted into a roster bonus in 2029 and 2030.
- The change means that the Browns will have some additional flexibility to create cap space in each of the next five years.
- Garrett will now get some of his money earlier in the year in 2029 and 2030.
What no one knows at the moment:
- If there is really a reason beyond the salary cap for Berry to rework Garrett’s contract at this time.
As we stated above, this is the Browns, so nothing can ever be viewed as
just a normal day at the office. The move, at least in the eyes of some, was made to make it easier for the Browns to trade Garrett this year for a truckload of draft picks.
After all, the Las Vegas Raiders received two first-round draft picks from the Baltimore Ravens for defensive end Maxx Crosby, up until the Ravens backed out, so how many first-round selections could the Browns get for the game’s best defensive player? Three? Four? Ten?
Don’t forget, the Browns are also pushing the NFL to allow teams to trade draft picks up to five years in the future, which would make it easier to increase the haul in return for Garrett. Since no team would ever be dumb enough to trade a first-round selection in three consecutive drafts (ahem), having the ability to spread those three (or possibly four) picks over five years would have opposing general managers lining up outside Berry’s office door in Berea.
Or, Berry realizes the team is better with Garrett, and this is just the latest move to offset some of the pain of quarterback Deshaun Watson’s contract.
Ultimately, it means whatever people want it to mean. If you believe the Browns are just working the salary cap angles, then that is all it is. If you think they are itching to trade Garrett, who has a no-trade clause, then this is just the first step toward that inevitability.
So what do you think, Browns fans? Is this much ado about nothing? Or are we neariing the end of Garrett’s tenure in Cleveland?
