English
Español
The NFL offseason is unique in a lot of ways, including how the timeline works. Most of the big decision makers are in Indianapolis, Indiana, this week for the NFL combine as the first big event heading toward the 2026 NFL draft in late April. A lot of focus is placed on each NFL draft with what can happen, NFL mock drafts, rumors, more rumors, and tracking every detail of prospects.
The timeline then hits a 180-degree turn as NFL free agency opens and changes things for many NFL teams.
The Cleveland Browns could be more active than GM Andrew Berry indicated a month ago, based on his comments in Indianapolis this week:
Berry can also make as much cap room as he needs, more or less, this offseason, especially with the rising salary cap. The problems for Cleveland in free agency are outside of the organization.
First, the upcoming class of free agents is not seen as a particularly strong one. There are a few talented players, but, for example, WR Alec Pierce is the sixth-ranked free agent according to ESPN, but his best year was last year with 1,003 yards and 47 receptions. The two best edge rushers, Jaelen Philip (#5 overall) and Odafe Oweh (#9), combined for 12.5 sacks last season.
Second, five teams are required to spend at least $50 million in cash this offseason to meet league minimums on spending:
The NFLPA told members (agents) that they expect the salary cap to be $303.5 million this league year, though it could reach as high as $305 million. Several teams, including the New York Jets, New Orleans Saints, Seattle Seahawks, Las Vegas Raiders, Los Angeles Rams and Chargers, as well as the Tennessee Titans, must spend an additional $50 million on player contracts this year to meet their three-year requirement, according to the CBA.
An important reminder that “cash” and “cap” are always different pieces of information. Four of the five teams listed above are among the top available salary cap spaces. On the other hand, while the Saints have to spend a lot of cash on player contracts for this season, they are currently projected to be over the cap by $8 million.
A lesser free agent class with just five teams mandated to spend a combined $250 million on contracts (which could include extensions) could act to not only dilute the free agent class but also send contracts skyrocketing. With the cash spend required to be done this season, those teams are likely to give out contracts with the kind of big signing bonuses that agents and players love.
The Browns might be able to add in free agency this year, but they could be paying Mercedes-Benz prices for Toyota Priuses (just an example, as two writers in our AirBnB drive that vehicle).