Cleveland Browns: Carson Wentz nosedive necessitates caution with Baker Mayfield’s future

Carson Wentz: From savior to albatross

Carson Wentz certainly isn’t in an ideal situation, with an aging and injured offensive line, subpar weapons, and an offensive coaching staff that has been exposed as a one-year fluke. But franchise QBs, especially ones with proven elite play, are expected to look at least somewhat competent in spite of everything around them. Wentz just looks broken.

To make matters worse for Philadelphia, they’ve already financially committed to Wentz for the long haul. His fifth-year option was exercised back in 2019, which was a no-brainer given his performance up to that point. Just a few months later, the Eagles gave him a four-year extension worth $128 million. Over $66 million of that was guaranteed at signing, and nearly $110 million was guaranteed overall.

Wentz’s cap hit this season is over $18.6 million due to the player option, which is a high price for what he’s put on the field in 2020. That number skyrockets to over $34.6 million in 2021, and remains above $31 million through the 2024 campaign, with a peak of over $36.2 million in 2023. Perhaps the Eagles would be willing to absorb the $24 million in dead cap that would occur if they cut Wentz after 2021, but that’s still extremely expensive. Wentz will certainly be in Philly for next season, and perhaps 2022 and 2023 as well.

Forget about returning to his MVP form; if Wentz doesn’t improve to at least around league average, that contract is going to be debilitating to the organization, if it isn’t already. The Eagles have an aging and frankly subpar roster around Wentz, and with that cap hit on a salary cap that won’t be increasing as in years past due to the pandemic, that roster isn’t going to be able to be improved very much.