The Cleveland Browns were wheeling and dealing last week, but it all started with Odell Beckham Jr. A busy couple of days for GM Andrew Berry and the Browns front office began when they negotiated a settlement with Beckham in return for his release. It should be noted that the Browns could have just cut Beckham and taken the existing cap hit but they did not and Berry should be commended for his ingenuity.
Knowing that Beckham was not ok with just going to any team in the NFL gave the Browns some leverage regarding his existing contract. The Browns were facing $7.25 million in dead cap money if Beckham cleared waivers. However, Berry worked with Beckham’s representation at EAM (Elite Athletic Management) to save the Browns $3 million dollars in cap space on Beckham’s contract.
The Browns agreed to leave the $7.25M on Beckham’s contract until he cleared waivers as a deterrent for teams looking to claim him. If a team had claimed him they would have had to take on the entire $7.25M from the Browns which was an unlikely scenario. They also agreed to do away with the last two years of Beckham’s contract. There is no more guaranteed money on his deal after 2021, so this was an easy decision and it guaranteed Beckham’s freedom after 21′ in the unlikely event that a team did claim him off of waivers.
In return, Beckham and his agents agreed to lower the Browns financial obligation to him down to $4.25M after he cleared waivers. Essentially, both sides agreed to a yearly guaranteed salary of $11.5M for 2021 versus the $14.5M he was originally owed. So when Beckham did clear waivers on Tuesday afternoon, the Browns dead cap hit dropped from 7.25M down to $4.25M. Beckham became an unrestricted free agent.
He signed on with the Los Angeles Rams and debuted on Monday Night Football.
The Browns had a lot of options with Beckham’s contract and situation. In the end, the team and his agents worked out a win-win situation for everyone through some creative contract language.
