NFL
Browns Salary Cap: Cleveland Restructures Deshaun Watson’s Contract
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Get to know Dan Girolamo betterPublished06 Mar 2025
The Cleveland Browns have restructured quarterback Deshaun Watson’s contract to clear up millions in salary cap space.
Browns Restructure Deshaun Watson’s Contract
The Browns have restructured the contract of QB Deshaun Watson, creating nearly $36M in 2025 cap space.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) March 6, 2025
Heading into Thursday, the Browns were around $22 million over the cap.
The Browns have restructured Watson’s contract ahead of the new league year to clear around $36 million in cap space, ESPN’s Field Yates reported Thursday.
Watson still has two years remaining on the five-year, fully guaranteed $230 million contract he signed in March 2022.
Watson is owed $46 million in each of the next two seasons.
This is not the first time the Browns have reworked Watson’s deal. Watson agreed to restructure his contract in December. The quarterback will still make the $92 million that he’s owed.
However, Cleveland readjusted the deal to improve their cap hits in the future, allowing the organization to push the dead money into 2030.
The #Browns (reluctantly) converted $44.745M of Deshaun Watson's 2025 salary into signing bonus, creating $35.79M of cap space.
New Cap Hits (dead cap)
2025: $36.9M ($172.3M)
2026: $81.6M ($135.4M)
2027: $53.7M (void)CLE is now cap compliant, holding $12.8M of Top 51 space.…
— Spotrac (@spotrac) March 6, 2025
What Are The Browns Going To Do At Quarterback In 2025?
The #Browns have now paid out the vast majority of Deshaun Watson's five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract. All that's left is a minimum salary this season and a $46 million salary in 2026. https://t.co/ZLTtl38aum
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 6, 2025
The Browns will be paying Watson not to play for most of 2025.
Watson is currently rehabbing an Achilles injury he suffered in 2024. His return date is unknown.
The Browns need a new quarterback, at least for the first half of the 2025 season.
Their options are limited due to the salary cap implications of Watson’s contract.
Two things work in their favor: NFL draft position and cheap veteran quarterbacks.
The Browns own the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft. Many NFL Draft experts have Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders as the top two quarterbacks in the draft.
Cleveland could take whichever quarterback falls to No. 2.
Even if Cleveland drafts a rookie, expect the Browns to sign a veteran quarterback on a cheap salary. Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, Aaron Rodgers, Gardner Minshew, and Cooper Rush are all free agents.
Keep an eye on Kirk Cousins. If the Falcons cut Cousins, Cleveland would likely be interested due to his connection with Kevin Stefanski from Minnesota.
