Cleveland Browns Rumors & News - Pro Football Rumors

Johnny Manziel: Football Career Is “In The Past”

June 30th, 2020 at 12:15pm CST by Zachary Links

These days, Johnny Football is more like Johnny Golf. While giving an interview at a country club, former Texas A&M star Johnny Manziel confirmed that he’s no longer focused on returning to the field.

“In the past, probably, is the way I’d characterize it,” Manziel said (via Don Williams of the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal). “I’ve finally got to a point where I’m trying to achieve happiness in life, not happiness on the football field.”

Manziel, 28 in December, has not played in the NFL the 2015 season. At one point in time, the Saints were rumored to have interest in him, but there has been no real chatter about Manziel in NFL circles this offseason. Manziel was also widely connected to the XFL, but nothing materialized between the quarterback and Vince McMahon‘s short-lived reboot.

“I know a lot of people probably want me to come back and play and give it another chance, but I don’t know, as far as being a person and figuring out life as a young adult — trying to make it and figure it out — if I’ve ever been in a better place than I’m in right now,” Manziel explained. “I can honestly say I’m happy and I’m doing the right things to try and put a smile on my face every day, and that means more to me than going out and grinding on a football field.”

After capturing the Heisman Trophy, the Aggies star wasn’t able to do much as a pro. In two seasons, the Browns’ first-round pick appeared in 14 games (eight starts) and completed 57% of his passes for 1,675 yards, seven touchdowns, and seven interceptions. He also tacked on another 259 rushing yards off of 46 totes.

Meanwhile, off the field, he’s been embroiled in a number of controversies, including a 2016 investigation into domestic violence allegations. Later, he was suspended for four games in the 2016 season for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy.

With football in the rear view mirror, Manziel is making some impressive strides on the links. He’s playing six days a week in Arizona and estimates that he’s down to a 2-handicap.

Patriots Were Cam Newton’s Only Offer

June 29th, 2020 at 12:52pm CST by Zachary Links

The Patriots represented Cam Newton‘s one and only contract offer, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (on Twitter). The Browns also showed recent interest, Schefter hears, but they did not put a deal on the table.

Several clubs were connected to Newton, but his free agency dragged on far longer than anyone expected. Now, we know why. Previously, we heard that the Chargers considered him, and Newton’s former head coach Ron Rivera at least thought about bringing him to the Redskins. Still, neither club presented a deal to Newton and his talks with the Browns “never really went anywhere,” per Schefter.

All along, Newton has been seeking an opportunity to start – ideally, with a contender. He found the perfect match in the Patriots, who were previously set to weigh the likes of Brian Hoyer and youngster Jarrett Stidham. With the Browns, Newton would have been entrenched as the QB2 behind Baker Mayfield, and that probably didn’t hold much appeal for him anyway.

With that lack of interest, the Patriots were able to land Newton for an absolute bargain. He can earn up to $7.5MM in 2020 through incentives, but his base salary is much, much lower.

Patriots Stripped Of Third-Round Pick By NFL

June 28th, 2020 at 7:24pm CST by Zachary Links

The NFL has rendered its verdict on the Patriots’ filming of a Bengals-Browns game late last year. The results aren’t pretty for the Pats – they’ll be fined $1.1MM and stripped of a 2021 third-round pick, according to Mike Reiss and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Furthermore, Pats TV crews will be barred from filming games during the upcoming season.

The Pats’ crew set up shop in the press box and filmed the Bengals’ sideline during their Week 14 game. A Bengals staffer took notice, turned the camera on the Pats’ crew, and turned over an eight-minute tape to the league office.

The Patriots said they were filming an episode of their online series “Do Your Job” and simply gathering b-roll for the next episode. The Patriots also acknowledged that they should have done a better job advising the crew of league protocol and communicating with the Bengals beforehand. Still, teams are prohibited from shooting video of coaches on the sideline and the NFL took the Patriots’ “Spygate” history into consideration.

OBJ Back To Full Strength Ahead Of Camp

June 25th, 2020 at 4:03pm CST by Sam Robinson

Odell Beckham Jr. will be good to go when the Browns convene for training camp. Kevin Stefanski confirmed the three-time Pro Bowl wideout has 100% recovered from the core muscle surgery he underwent earlier this offseason, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com notes. Beckham battled this problem for much of last season, often not being able to practice until Fridays, while also navigating a hip injury. While the star receiver suited up for 16 games — after failing to do so in three of his five Giants seasons — OBJ did not develop much of a rapport with Baker Mayfield. In Year 2 with the Browns, Beckham attended the team’s virtual offseason meetings. He skipped much of Cleveland’s onsite OTAs last year.

Browns’ Kareem Hunt Hoping For Extension

June 22nd, 2020 at 2:19pm CST by Zachary Links

Browns running back Kareem Hunt feels “lucky” and “blessed” to have the chance to play for the Browns, despite his off-the-field history. At the same time, he’d like to receive an extension from the team (via Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer).

“No question,‘’ Hunt said. “I’d definitely like to be a part of something like this. Everybody is here that I care about. I know everybody in the whole town. I would not mind playing for the Browns for a long time.”

The Browns gave Hunt a second NFL chance in 2018, despite disturbing video of him striking a woman at a Cleveland hotel. In that same year, he also got into a physical altercation with a man in Ohio. On the field, he delivered a 4.2 yards-per-carry average. Off the field, this past January, he was cited for marijuana possession.

The new regime in Cleveland opted to stick with him, though they let him know that he has to do better.

“Just pretty much [they’ve said] ‘I can’t have that. It’s not acceptable,‘’’ Hunt said. “I’ve got to be smarter and cannot be doing stuff like that. We had a good talk. They see me on the field as a guy who is going to make some plays this year and help the team win. That’s what I have been looking forward to. We have been talking. I keep in touch with coach all the time about what he wants to see and stuff like that.”

Hunt is slated to be a free agent after earning $3.26MM in base pay this year. The Browns probably aren’t in a rush to commit additional dollars and years to him.

Browns Exec: COVID-19 May Impact Spending

June 19th, 2020 at 5:42pm CST by Zachary Links

Throughout the offseason, the pandemic has held up contract signings for this year’s rookies as well as extensions. As the uncertainty continues, vice president of player personnel Glenn Cook admits that the Browns’ plans have “somewhat” changed their approach (via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com).

“All of that goes into play when we’re talking about any of these moves that we’re looking to make, whether it’s extensions, signing free agents, possibly trades or even going into 2021 and 2022,” Cook said. “It does somewhat change what our overall plan is and we actually initially did have some conversations around that just in terms of team planning — not specific to Myles [Garrett] — and just what that looks like given what COVID was saying in February, March or going into the next year. Yes, you do think about that with all the moves we make and all the decisions that may come into play now and into the season.”

The Browns’ intention to keep Garrett for the long haul hasn’t changed, but it sounds like the Browns’ may think long and hard about the payout structure for all of their forthcoming deals. Meanwhile, they’ve got nearly $40MM in cap space to work with this year. A truly conservative approach could see Cleveland hold on to some of those dollars and roll them into 2021, when things will hopefully be more stable.

Meanwhile, Jason Fitzgerald of Over The Cap (Twitter link) estimates that only a handful of teams prepared for a labor stoppage this year and wonders how many owners are instructing their GMs to halt spending, rather than planning proactively.

Jadeveon Clowney’s Best Multi-Year Offer Came From Browns

June 18th, 2020 at 8:18pm CST by Zachary Links

The Browns’ offer wasn’t good enough for Jadeveon Clowney, but it’s the best multi-year opportunity he’s gotten, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. The Browns’ proposal was previously estimated to be somewhere in the range of $12MM/year.

Earlier this week, we heard that the Browns would be willing to move their offer up to somewhere around $15MM/year. It’s not clear whether they’d be open to giving him that kind of money over multiple seasons or just for 2020, however.

The Browns have nearly $40MM in cap space, plenty of cash for summer upgrades. Besides, any deal for Clowney worth $15MM or less could be offset by the release of Olivier Vernon, who is due $15.25MM in non-guaranteed cash this year.

Clowney could effectively come as a package with a Myles Garrett extension. Both defensive ends are represented by Bus Cook, who is presently working to make Garrett the highest-paid DE in league history.

The Seahawks haven’t ruled out a reunion with Clowney either, but they’re limited by their cap situation. With just ~$14MM in spare room, they’ll have to get creative – and convincing – to bring the former No. 1 overall pick back to Seattle. For what it’s worth, they offered Clowney a ~$15MM deal earlier in the offseason, before they allocated most of their money elsewhere.

Browns Willing To Increase Offer To Jadeveon Clowney?

June 15th, 2020 at 4:47pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Browns continue to put in work on the Jadeveon Clowney front. In addition to the team talking with Clowney’s agent — amid Myles Garrett extension talks, with Bus Cook representing both players — it appears the Browns would be willing to increase their offer.

Cleveland’s previous offer to Clowney came in around the $12MM-per-year range. The Browns would sign off on paying the former No. 1 overall pick in the $15MM neighborhood on a one-year deal, Albert Breer of SI.com notes.

Clowney is believed to have received an offer around $15MM AAV from the Seahawks. The three-time Pro Bowl pass rusher dropped his asking price from around $20MM per year to the $17-$18MM-AAV range early in free agency but has remained on the market for several weeks since.

As of Monday, the Browns hold an NFL-most $37MM in cap space — well north of the Seahawks’ $13.9MM — and could outmuscle the Hawks for Clowney if they chose to. The Browns have been connected to Clowney for over two months. Should the Browns land Clowney, they would likely create more cap space by parting ways with Olivier Vernon. The latter is set to earn a Browns-most $15.25MM in 2020 base salary, which is currently non-guaranteed.

While a $15MM payment would be almost a middle-class edge rusher deal this year, with 17 edge defenders earning that on average, a one-year deal would allow Clowney a chance to re-enter the market at 28 during what could well be a more normal 2021 offseason.

Latest On Browns, Jadeveon Clowney

June 14th, 2020 at 7:44pm CST by Zachary Links

Jadeveon Clowney wasn’t interested in Cleveland’s last contract offer, but the Browns haven’t given up on signing the former No. 1 overall pick, as Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer writes. They’re already in contact with Clowney’s agent Bus Cook as they negotiate an extension for Myles Garrett, which could help to facilitate a deal.

The Browns’ offer was believed to be somewhere in the $12MM range, a far cry from the $20MM Clowney was said to be seeking when free agency opened. At some point in March, Clowney scaled back his expectations to $17-$18MM per year, but no one was willing to get into that territory. His highest reported offer came from the Seahawks, who pitched him on a one-year, $15MM pact to return. The Seahawks are also keeping the door open – at least slightly – but that deal is not believed to be on the table at present.

Between Garrett and Olivier Vernon, the Browns are pretty well set at defensive end. Still, Clowney could offer greater upside than Vernon, who finished out with just 3.5 sacks in his first year with Cleveland. Vernon is currently set to earn $15.25MM in 2020, but his salary is completely non-guaranteed. If the Browns keep him, it’s likely that they’ll ask him to adjust his invoice. The Browns could also easily shed him and replace him with Clowney, who notched 24.5 sacks and three Pro Bowl trips between 2016 and 2018.

In the interest of equal time – Clowney didn’t offer much in the way of sacks last year, either. Clowney had just three with Seattle, his lowest showing of any healthy season.

Latest On Titans’, Browns’ Pursuit Of Jadeveon Clowney

June 12th, 2020 at 12:39pm CST by Rory Parks

Nothing like another Jadeveon Clowney story to ring in the weekend. The former No. 1 overall pick remains unsigned, with the Titans, Browns, and — perhaps to a lesser extent — Seahawks representing the most likely landing spots.

The Titans have reportedly made multiple offers to Clowney, but obviously those offers were unappealing to a player who was said to be seeking a lucrative multi-year pact worth around $20MM per year when the offseason began. Tennessee GM Jon Robinson had previously acknowledged that he discussed a contract with Clowney’s camp, but there have been no talks between the two sides for awhile.

In a conference call with reporters yesterday, Robinson said, “No conversations of recent. I think we’re going to continue to monitor it and see where [it goes]. I’ve seen what you guys have seen that’s been posted on social media. I know he wants to play. I think we would be a pretty good fit for him, and there was some mutual interest there when we started the discussion, but I would say that really hasn’t grown any legs since we spoke last” (h/t Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk).

The Titans have always looked like a good fit given the presence of head coach Mike Vrabel — the Texans’ LB coach and defensive coordinator during Clowney’s first four years in Houston — and given the club’s need for another pass rusher. The team did take a flier on Vic Beasley and will return Harold Landry, who posted nine sacks in a promising sophomore effort in 2019, but Clowney could provide a major boost to the Titans’ defensive front.

As for the Browns, we last heard that they recently floated an offer that would have paid Clowney $12MM/year in base salary, but in the story linked above, Williams cites a report indicating that Cleveland has also put forth a one-year, $18MM proposal. It’s unclear if that’s accurate or a typo, as Williams may simply have intended to reference the $12MM/year report. If Cleveland really did offer one year at $18MM, roughly the amount that Clowney would have made if Seattle had been willing and able to use the franchise tag, he should probably snap it up.

For his part, though, Clowney has said he is willing to be patient and does not feel rushed to sign before teams have the opportunity to look at him in person and evaluate his medicals. Given the gradual return to normalcy throughout the country, that may happen sooner rather than later.