According to Field Yates, the Browns have restructured QB Deshaun Watson‘s contract, converting $44.79 million of his base salary into a signing bonus and spreading it over the remainder of his deal.
That creates $35.8 million in cap space for the Browns and pushes their available total to $62 million, which is most in the league.
However, it’s not likely the Browns have big plans with that space, at least not right away. They can roll it over to future years but since the money to Watson was guaranteed, it’s just a matter of when it hits their cap, not if.
Watson, 28, was taken in the first round of the 2017 NFL draft out of Clemson by the Texans. He signed a four-year, $13.854 million rookie deal with the Texans that included a fifth-year option of around $17.3 million for the 2021 season.
The Texans later signed Watson to a four-year extension worth as much as $177 million heading into the 2020 season, paying him $39 million a year. However, Watson requested a trade after the season, then sat out the entire 2021 season while navigating more than two dozen lawsuits for sexual misconduct. He was later suspended for 11 games.
Watson was traded to the Browns for significant draft compensation in 2022 and signed a five-year, $230 million, fully guaranteed contract as a part of the trade. The deal runs through 2026 and includes base salaries of $46 million in each of the final two seasons.
In 2023, Watson appeared in six games for the Browns and completed 61.4 percent of his passes for 1,115 yards with seven touchdowns and four interceptions. He has also rushed 26 times for 142 yards and one touchdown.
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