Browns Could Pay More for All-Pro WR Trade Chubb Nick, Teller Wyatt

The Cleveland Browns need another elite wide receiver with Amari Cooper, but at what cost? San Francisco 49ers star Brandon Aiyuk has become a popular name among Dawg Pounds after his inner circle recently reported that he could leave this offseason.

However, while the organization’s capacity is currently limited, adding a player like Ayuk would require significant spending elsewhere on the roster. Jack Duffin of the Orange and Brown Report took to social media on Saturday, February 17th to outline the most likely scenario in which Cleveland could make room for Aiyuk on the salary cap table.

“#Browns fans are tweeting about the addition of Brandon Aiyuk. There are two surefire ways to generate the level of cash you need through unsecured contracts. a) “Cooper is gone”; b) Teller and Chubb are gone,” Duffin wrote. “I’m not saying this is the only way, but this is the most likely scenario.”

Browns RB Nick Chubb faces a roster threat regardless of the Brandon Aiyuk trade.

Adding Aiyuk will help quarterback Deshaun Watson and the air attack, but losing Nick Chubb and Wyatt Teller will hurt Cleveland’s running game. But any discussion of Chubb playing elsewhere in 2024 must take into account general manager Andrew Berry’s recent comments.

“I realize this is like the elephant in the room,” Berry said of Chubb’s contract on Jan. 22, according to Zach Jackson of The Athletic. “No one wants this to be the last time they carry the ball for the Browns in Pittsburgh.” “There’s a lot of work to be done… but I hope he’s in the team.” Anyone familiar with how Berry typically interacts with the media would think this is the closest we can get to a public statement that a player’s future is in jeopardy.

Chubb is recovering from a devastating knee injury, and his cap hit for 2024 is over $15.8 million. The team could save $11.8 million by cutting or trading him at any point this offseason. Those savings make Chubb potentially expendable and at least justify losing Chubb to make room for an elite edge playmaker like Aiyuk.

Meanwhile, Teller has two years left on his $56.8 million contract. Cleveland could save $6.2 million in cap space this year and $9.2 million in 2025 by cutting or trading the three-time Pro Bowl shooting guard after June 1.

The Browns are unlikely to part ways with Amari Cooper under any scenario.

Another route Duffin mentioned for Aiyuk involves cutting ties with Cooper, but that would somewhat defeat the purpose of pursuing the Niners receiver. The whole idea is to keep Cooper as 1A and add a good player next to him as 1B. In the final year of his contract, Cooper will earn nearly $24 million toward the Browns’ 2024 cap hit.

But rather than being stingy by cutting or trading Cooper, Cleveland is likely to expand its reach after the fifth Pro Bowl campaign of his career. This allowed for a restructuring that converted money into bonuses and significantly lowered the cap while keeping Cooper on the team.

Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com reported on February 4 that the Browns have no intention of trading Cooper, who has 72 catches for 1,250 yards and five touchdowns in 2023. Brandon Aiyuk will power up the Browns’ offense, but it will come at a cost Pairing Cooper and Aiyuk in Cleveland would give Watson one of the best wide receiver tandems in the NFL.

Aiyuk’s trajectory is one that any team would be interested in as he enters his fifth season in 2024. He’s gotten better each season, earning second-team All Pro honors last year with 75 catches for 1,342 yards and seven touchdowns despite some fumbles. game. Aiyuk also averaged 17.9 yards per reception during his second straight 1,000-yard-plus campaign in 2023. The 49ers exercised the fifth-year option on Aiyuk’s contract, keeping the former first-round pick (25th overall in 2020) on a contract worth $14.1 million in 2024.

Trading a wide receiver only really makes sense if San Francisco feels they can’t afford him long-term. But it’s entirely possible with a roster that only has $571,000 at its current position and the team’s value will continue to rise. for a long time. next few years.

However, the Niners could potentially secure Ayuk’s franchise in 2025, which would be a logical path if he continues his upward trajectory. That’s because it would give him one of the highest salaries at the position this season.

If the Browns are interested in trading Aiyuk, they not only have to consider the cost to the roster (could be Chubb and Teller) and the price of the trade (at least a first-round pick or more), but also whether they can do it. We can afford long-term receivers. Spotrac estimates Aiyuk’s new four-year contract will give him a market value of nearly $23 million per year.