Browns get massive salary cap help without making a single move

All the doom and gloom predictions surrounding the Cleveland Browns salary cap situation don't seem so daunting now. On Friday, the NFL finally announced its 2024 salary cap and while everyone expected the number to increase, it still came in much higher than anyone predicted.

Most predictions put the cap at around $242 million for this season but the number ended up being $255.4 million. That means rather than being more than $19 million over the cap, the Browns are just $6.2 million over the limit.

This also means the predictions that Nick Chubb will have to be released no longer hold weight — although they never truly did. Cleveland could still extend him and if they do, they can spread his cap hit out and that alone would be enough to get under the cap.

Browns suddenly have a lot of options

From there, the Browns can still free up space by restructuring Deshaun Watson, Amari Cooper, and Denzel Ward — among others. Just the three mentioned, however, could open up $56.6 according to OverTheCap.com, putting them $50 million under the cap.

If this were to happen, Cleveland could suddenly get aggressive in the offseason. They could start to target players such as Garrett Bolles or Courtland Sutton via trade to improve the offense. They might even be able to afford to keep Za'Darius Smith, who is entering free agency — or find a suitable replacement.

Whatever they decide to do, the Browns have a lot more wiggle room thanks to the hike that was announced. Perhaps now, PFF can stop worrying about whether or not David Njoku is on the roster in 2024.

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