Cleveland Browns Free Agents: What Will It Take to Keep Key Browns?
One of the most important issues a team faces every offseason is deciding which of its own free agents to keep and how to keep them. The Cleveland Browns have 19 players whose contracts are expiring this offseason, according to Spotrac.com, and while none of the names are “elite,” there are plenty of major contributors. So what exactly would it cost the Browns to bring these players back?
Teams that covet their own talent too much can overpay for a guy who could have been replaced at a cheaper price. They must also weigh the effect letting a guy walk can have in a locker room too. Players know which teams pay their guys and who is always looking for the bargain. It is a fine line to walk.
The market is set by contracts the prior year and comparing ages and production. Agents don’t care about what is on the film as much as they care about the numbers they can sell. Front offices will do everything they can to minimize what the numbers mean and bring down the asking price. This is NFL negotiating.
The Browns will be in an interesting spot with some of their free agents, as some had career years and others never materialized into the players they envisioned. Let’s take a look at the top five free agents for the Browns and figure out what it might take for Cleveland to keep them if it so chooses.
Craig Robertson
1 of 5
Inside linebacker Craig Robertson is coming off his best year as a pro and looks like he can be a major contributor on any defense in which he plays. Robertson’s numbers are not particularly amazing, but his game film was very impressive. He also went from one of the worst coverage linebackers in the league to one of the best.
Robertson also has his age and health going for him. He is just 26 years old and has missed only two games in the last three seasons. Finding a comparison for him in last year’s free-agent crop is difficult, but there is one guy whose contract could be comparable.
This season Robertson had 57 tackles and four passes defended. In 2013, former Browns linebacker D’Qwell Jackson had 75 tackles and 1.5 sacks. Their numbers are a little different, but their film is very comparable.
What Robertson lacked in numbers, however, he more than makes up for in youth and mobility. Last offseason Jackson signed a four-year, $22 million contract with the Indianapolis Colts. As CBSSports.com's Ryan Wilson notes, CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora reports $11 million of that was guaranteed.
The contract total is very close to what Robertson can pull on the open market with the right suitor, but the guaranteed money is way out of whack. Robertson will be looking at half or maybe even less of the guaranteed money that Jackson received.
Verdict: Four years, $18 million contract with $5 million guaranteed
Tashaun Gipson
2 of 5
If there is one guy who deserves to get paid this offseason it is safety Tashaun Gipson. He has had back-to-back career years and is now a restricted free agent. Despite the fact that he missed the final five games of the year with a knee injury, the Browns need to do everything they can to lock him up long term.
His agent has to be licking his chops because his play is comparable with some of the top safeties in the NFL. Gipson is also heading to his first Pro Bowl. It’s time to get paid.
In 2013 Gipson had five interceptions (returning one for a touchdown), 12 passes defensed and 63 tackles. In 2014 he had six interceptions (returning one for a touchdown), eight passes defensed, one forced fumble and 28 tackles in just 11 games.
Amazingly, the closest comparison to his number was one of the top free agents on the market last offseason: Jairus Byrd. In fact, the numbers were not just comparable; they were better.
After a 2012 campaign of five interceptions, six passes defensed, four forced fumbles and 52 tackles, Byrd backed it up with a 2013 season filled with four interceptions, six passes defensed, one forced fumble and 37 tackles.
Byrd went from the Buffalo Bills to the New Orleans Saints on a six-year, $54 million contract that had $26.3 million guaranteed, according to Spotrac.com.
Gipson’s contract will not be that gargantuan, but at just 24 years old he is about to become very rich.
Verdict: Four years, $30 million with $11 million guaranteed
Jabaal Sheard
3 of 5
This contract is going to go the opposite way of Robertson and Gipson. Outside linebacker Jabaal Sheard never quite lived up to the billing of a second-round draft pick. He had flashes of excellence, but the consistency never materialized.
In fact, Sheard’s numbers have decreased every season since his rookie year, and that is never a good thing heading into contract negotiations. He had just two sacks and three passes defensed this season. His rookie year he had 8.5 sacks.
There is no comparable player production-wise in last year’s free-agent crop, but there is one who compares in profile. Buffalo linebacker Brandon Spikes was also taken in the second round, and he too never lived up to what the New England Patriots had hoped when he was selected.
This past offseason Spikes signed a one-year deal worth $3 million with $900,000 of that guaranteed with the Bills. This is very close to what Sheard is probably going to have to take. If he takes a shorter deal and his numbers increase, he could end up getting paid next offseason.
Verdict: One year, $5 million with $1.5 million guaranteed
.jpg?w=256 "Colts Jaguars Football")
Buster Skrine
4 of 5
Another Browns player who is due for a big paycheck is cornerback Buster Skrine. His numbers the last two seasons have been fantastic, and he was a beneficiary of offenses trying to stay away from All-Pro Joe Haden.
He is undersized at 5’9”, 185 pounds but has the fight of a pit bull. On film Skrine is always involved in the play and almost never is burned to the point of embarrassment. That is all you can ask for in a second corner. He is also not afraid to mix it up in the run game.
His production, while very impressive, will be a tough sell for a monster contract. His four interceptions and 18 passes defensed were impressive, but when you consider he has 36 passes defensed over the last two seasons and has not missed a game it is even more impressive.
The fact that he is near the top of the league in penalties will hurt him on the negotiating front, however. His contract will fall somewhere between Captain Munnerlyn, who signed a three-year, $11.25 million deal with the Minnesota Vikings of which $4.45 million was guaranteed, and Aqib Talib, who got a six-year, $57 million deal with the New England Patriots of which $26 million was guaranteed.
That is a huge window. But Skrine’s side will argue that he should be closer to Talib’s contract, while management will say he should be much closer to Munnerlyn. In the end, management will win because Skrine will not be a primary cornerback on any team and won’t get paid like one either.
Verdict: Four years, $25 million with $10 million guaranteed
Brian Hoyer
5 of 5
The Browns would be mistaken to offer Hoyer a contract next season, but there are some clear references if they plan to do so. The amount of money Hoyer lost over the last seven weeks of the season is astounding. At one point people were referencing Andy Dalton as a contract to look at, and now it is much lower than that.
Just like the argument most fans have, Hoyer’s agent will show the quarterback's record as a starter during negotiations, while management will show his stats. Being dead-last in completion percentage and second-to-last in quarterback rating never helps negotiations.
Hoyer’s contract will now be much closer to the middle ground where younger fringe starters reside. The best comparison is a guy like Ryan Fitzpatrick, who was brought to the Houston Texans last offseason on a contract that would be comfortable for the team if he ended up a starter or backup.
That is the situation Hoyer will find himself in this offseason. He won’t be handed a job, but he will get more money than a backup in case he ends up winning one somewhere.
Fitzpatrick signed a two-year, $7.25 million contract with $4 million guaranteed.
Verdict: Two years, $10 million with $4 million guaranteed
.jpg?w=480 "Colts Jaguars Football")
.png?w=480)
