Will Cleveland Browns regret the David Njoku extension?

Tight end David Njoku and the Cleveland Browns agreed to a huge extension this week but will the front office get what they expect from him?

One of three first-round picks in 2017 for the Cleveland Browns — along with Myles Garrett and Jabrill Peppers — David Njoku just signed a huge extension that will keep him in northeast Ohio for the next four seasons while paying him $56.75 million.

The question is, did Cleveland make the right move?

Sure, Njoku has all the talent in the world and is just 25-years old, but he has had a bit of a roller-coaster career thus far.

After a rookie season where he put up 386 yards on 32 receptions, Njoku had what looked to be a breakout campaign in 2018. That season, he recorded 56 receptions for 639 yards and four touchdowns. He was also just 22-years of age, so it felt as though the sky was the limit.

Things then went south in 2019 as he had just five receptions for 41 yards after missing 12 games and seeing the bench an awful lot in the games he did play that season. From there, it got rocky again as the Browns signed Austin Hooper and drafted Harrison Bryant.

Njoku asked to be traded but after speaking with head coach Kevin Stefanski, he rescinded the request and decided to buy into the scheme. He improved vastly as a blocker but was still the second option behind Hooper and had just 19 receptions for 213 yards and two touchdowns.

However, things turned around for him in 2021. Hooper was struggling in his role and the wide receiver corps was also a problem for the Browns. That led to Njoku pulling down 36 receptions for 475 yards with four touchdowns.

Cleveland then released Hooper in the offseason, hit Njokju with the franchise tag — and finally, got this deal done.

Are the Cleveland Browns paying too much for projections?

After the news of Njoku’s extension hit, there seems to be a steady stream of opinions — and it’s pretty split. There are those who tout Njoku’s insane physical abilities as the reason for locking him up. On the flip side, there are those who think this deal is too much for a guy who has yet to prove he’s elite at the position.

In the end, the Browns are paying a premium for talent rather than production. But they’re not alone.

Just last year, the New England Patriots signed Jonnu Smith to a four-year deal worth $50 million which is similar to what Njoku just earned. Smith came over from the Tennessee Titans where he just put up 448 yards and eight touchdowns on 41 receptions.

All those numbers were career highs and other than touchdowns, Njoku has topped each of those numbers and twice put up more yards than Smith had in his best campaign.

For New England, it’s up in the air if the move will work. In his first season, Smith had just 28 receptions for 294 yards and a touchdown. Clearly, they want more production than this for what they’re paying him.

Looking at Smith’s deal, there is some danger in paying so much based on protection. Having said that, the Browns aren’t taking as big of a risk as New England did since they have known Njoku throughout his entire career.

They have seen him face adversity and come out on top. They have also seen him get called out publicly by their former general manager and respond by improving his blocking in a major way.

Cleveland knows they want more out of Njoku now that he has a mega-deal but they also believe he will answer the call as he continues to do throughout his career.

And with no one in the way of his spot as TE1, there’s plenty of reason to keep betting on him.