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Browns Restructure Deshaun Watson Contract in Massive Salary Cap Clearing Move

Cleveland is getting their books ready ahead of NFL free agency.

Mike Kadlick

Watson is recovering from two Achilles tears.
Watson is recovering from two Achilles tears. / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
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The Cleveland Browns are setting themselves up to make some moves ahead of the 2025 NFL league year.

According to multiple reports, the team has restructured quarterback Deshaun Watson's contract in a move that clears $35.8 million in salary cap space. This is the second time in the last calendar year that Cleveland has restructured the deal.

After being traded from the Houston Texans in the spring of 2022, Watson signed a five-year, $230 million deal with the Browns—the largest guaranteed contract in NFL history. Since then, he's played in just 19 games, is 9-10 as a starter, and is coming off of an Achilles tear—which he re-ruptured during rehab—and could miss the entirety of next season.

Cleveland currently holds the No. 2 pick in the 2025 NFL draft and according to ESPN’s Dan Graziano, the Browns are "widely expected" to use it to select one of the top two quarterbacks in the class—either Miami’s Cam Ward or Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders.

“There's a strong chance Watson has played his final game as a Brown," Graziano added. "Cleveland is thinking about what comes next at the position.”

This contract restructure only solidifies that.

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Mike Kadlick
MIKE KADLICK

Mike Kadlick is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the New England Patriots for WEEI sports radio in Boston and continues to do so for CLNS Media. He has a master's in public relations from Boston University. Kadlick is also an avid runner and a proud lover of all things pizza.