If the Browns want to re-sign defensive end Jadeveon Clowney before he becomes an unrestricted free agent, they have exclusive negotiating rights until March 17. (Cleveland Browns)
With Super Bowl done, Browns set to enter the 2022 NFL business season
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland …
The end of the Super Bowl means the beginning of the NFL business season. Although trades don’t become official and free agency doesn’t begin until 4 p.m ET on March 16, teams are now free to clear the decks of their roster through waivers and contract terminations. Teams can negotiate with their own pending free agents at this time.
Browns business
1. The Browns head into the 2022 business season with approximately $25 million in space under the projected salary cap of $208 million, according to Overthecap.com. The Bengals have $57.3 million in cap space, the Steelers $31.2 million, the Ravens $8.7 million.
2. The contracts of linebacker Anthony Walker and defensive tackle Malik Jackson void on Friday, making them unrestricted free agents.
3. The Browns have exclusive negotiating rights with defensive end Jadeveon Clowney until March 16. He will become an unrestricted free agent on that day.
4. Salary guarantees kick in for safety John Johnson ($4 million) and running back Nick Chubb ($2.86 million in 2023) on March19; and defensive end Myles Garrett ($10 million in 2023), guard Wyatt Teller ($12.5 million in 2023), and guard Joel Bitonio ($11 million in 2023) on March 20.
5. Quarterback Case Keenum has a $1 million roster bonus due on March 21. So that would serve as an unofficial deadline for the Browns to decide whether to bring him back for the last year of his contract, worth $6.1 million, or restructure Keenum’s deal.
6. The Browns have no first-round player from the 2019 draft eligible to have a fifth-year option picked up in May. The Browns traded away their No. 1 pick that year in the deal for Odell Beckham Jr. the year before.
Playing tag
7. Teams can designate franchise and transition tags from Feb. 22 until March 8. The Browns are not expected to use either tag on any of their 15 unrestricted free agents. Browns players eligible for unrestricted free agency: Defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, punter Dustin Colquitt, defensive tackle Sheldon Day, safety Ronnie Harrison, receiver Rashard Higgins, offensive lineman Chris Hubbard, defensive tackle Malik Jackson, defensive end Takk McKinley, quarterback Nick Mullens, tight end David Njoku, defensive end Ifeadi Odenigbo, linebacker Malcolm Smith, safety M.J. Stewart, receiver Ryan Switzer, and linebacker Anthony Walker.
Path to the draft
8. The NFL Scouting Combine is March 1-7 in Indianapolis. A total of 324 prospects have been invited. It’s the 34th year the Combine has been held in Indianapolis and the last year of the city’s contract with the NFL. In June, the league informed clubs it was putting up bids for cities to host the Combine for the years 2023-28. Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Dallas and Tampa are considered potential future sites for the Combine. Indianapolis also is expected to bid. It is not known whether the NFL will make the Combine a traveling circus from year to year or rotate it among three or four sites. One thing is for sure: The league did not re-locate NFL Network studios and operations next door to the $5 billion SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, CA, for nothing. If SoFi Stadium doesn’t become the permanent host of the NFL Combine, it surely will be the anchor of a multi-city rotation.
9. The Browns’ offseason conditioning program begins April 18. The NFL’s offseason programs were severely altered in 2020 and 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The league has not yet announced guidelines for 2022.
10. The NFL draft, headquartered this year in Las Vegas, is April 28-30.
