Cleveland Browns: Jabrill Peppers remains unsigned with one week to go

The Cleveland Browns begin training camp in a week, but still need to sign Jabrill Peppers to avoid a holdout that can become a major distraction.

The Cleveland Browns selected ten players in the 2017 NFL Draft, and have already signed nine. That number would be fine if it was still June, but the remaining unsigned player could provide an unnecessary problem.

I have written a few pieces on Jabrill Peppers over the past few months, stressing no need to panic about a holdout. But the team opens training camp in one week and he still remains unsigned. This is not good.

The last notable holdout in Cleveland came back in 2007 with Brady Quinn, who did not sign a contract until August of that year. It created a major distraction and opened the door for Derek Anderson to eventually take the starting job, so Peppers must be aware that a holdout could do more damage than good.

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The issue is the offset language in his contract, and the lack of a deal is likely being pushed along by his agent. There is nothing wrong with a player wanting to guarantee his entire contract, so it is up to the Browns to find a way to make this work. With the available cap space, there is no reason why the Browns can’t guarantee a few million dollars for the No. 25 overall pick.

The fact the Browns were able to sign both Myles Garrett and David Njoku to deals so fast makes it concerning that Peppers is pushing it so close to the deadline.

This is really the only problematic storyline surrounding the team heading into camp, so his contract status will be magnified until a deal is signed, which will hopefully happen before July 27.

Next: 5 most difficult road games in 2017

This offseason has been a successful one, but Browns fans know that the start of the actual season is not always so kind.

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