Browns restructure $230m Deshaun Watson contract to clear path for free agency reinforcements amid Shedeur Sanders’ looming QB battle

As expected, the Cleveland Browns have restructured Deshaun Watson’s contract.

Only this time, for the last time.

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According to Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot, the Browns are converting up to $44.745 million of Watson’s $46 million base salary into a restructure bonus.

In turn, this eases his $80.716 million cap charge.

Watson’s $230 million guaranteed contract has widely gone down as one of the worst deals in NFL history, with the former Clemson signal caller having made just 19 appearances under center since 2022, due to suffering various long-term injuries in his Browns tenure.

With the 30-year-old quarterback now left with the veteran’s minimum of $1.255 million in what is the fifth – and final – year of his guaranteed deal, the expectation is that the Browns will free up in region of $36 million in cap space.

Cabot also notes that the remaining charges from this contract restructure will be added to the void years in his contract which run from 2027 to 2029.

With the additional cap space freed up, the Browns can now look to bolster their roster in free agency, with a particular need for receivers and offensive linemen, the latter especially after they are expected to lose almost their entire starting o-line in free agency.

The free-agency negotiation period begins at midday on March 9, but teams must be cap-compliant – with a new cap of $301.2 million – by the time the new league year officially begins on March 11.

But the Browns aren’t just restructuring Watson’s deal, they are also expected to do the same with cornerback Denzel Ward, per ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi.

“A restructure to Denzel Ward’s contract is also expected to come soon, per source,” Oyefusi wrote on Friday. 

“The Browns have frequently restructured contracts, converting salaries to bonuses and spreading out the charges to free immediate cap space. GM Andrew Berry said the Browns will have “ample” cap space this offseason.”

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The five-time Pro Bowler currently has a $32.8 million cap charge in 2026, but by converting all but $1.255 million of the 28-year-old’s $16.9 base salary into a restructure bonus, the Browns will create an additional $15.6 million in available cap space.

It is likely that the Browns will use some of this newly-created space to re-sign pending free agent Devin Bush.

The veteran linebacker is coming off a career year in which he recorded 124 tackles and three interceptions, two of which were pick-sixes.

Another player they are thought to have high up on their priority re-signing list is that of punter Cory Bojorquez, with guard Teven Jenkins another name floated.

What does Watson’s restructure mean for Shedeur Sanders?

With Watson ruled out of the 2025 campaign due to the torn Achilles he suffered in 2024, the Browns spent much of last season playing a game of quarterback roulette.

They began the season with proven NFL veteran Joe Flacco under center before benching him – and then trading him to a division rival – for rookie Dillon Gabriel.

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With the former Oregon star not making too much of an impression on then-head coach Kevin Stefanski, after he suffered a concussion during a game, another rookie in Shedeur Sanders finally entered the fray.

He would hold on to the starting spot for the remainder of the season, recording 1,400 yards through the air for seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions as the Browns won three of their five games with the son of NFL icon Deion Sanders at the helm.

He even earned a Pro Bowl nod, albeit it came with a myriad of controversy.

With former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken now running point as the head coach, the battle to be named the Browns’ starting quarterback is expected to begin again from scratch with Watson and Sanders at the forefront.

“Any time you have a player that at one time has exhibited the skill set at an elite level, I think you are always going to give them the benefit of the doubt that somehow we might be able to get that out of them again,” Monken said of Watson at the NFL Scouting Combine.

“I think that’s how you should look at every player. I’m going to let it play out.

“I think it would be completely unfair — just like it would be in any classroom setting, if you have a history exam and all the students walk in and before they are actually given them the exam you give them a grade.

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“How would you give them a grade? Based on male, female, race, how they look, how they are dressed? Now you are going to have some preconceived notions because we have prior evidence, but I don’t decide who plays. The players decide who plays.”

On Sanders specifically, Monken spoke very highly of the young quarterback, with reports emerging earlier in the 2025 season that the Ravens had hoped to select the former Colorado Buffaloes star in the draft but were snubbed by the 23-year-old.

“I think what you see is elite playmaking ability,” Monken said. “That’s in him. You’ve seen it, we’ve seen it, you saw it in college, you saw it on tape last year.

“Sure, there’s a ways to go, but what rookie isn’t? What first-year player doesn’t have a long way to go? I’m excited to get started with him and all of our quarterbacks and all of our players.”

As far as Browns general manager Andrew Berry – who survived the NFL’s ‘Black Monday’ when Stefanski didn’t – is concerned, though, it’s all to play for, with him non-committal on the starting QB decision.

“Any player on our roster we would want to compete,” Berry said on February 24. “We believe in competition at every spot. That’s no different than quarterback.

“Deshaun’s been working really hard. He’s been working his tail off. And like I said, we’re excited to go in April with all of our players across the roster because competition is something that we really believe in.”

With Watson firmly in the mix to earn his starting job back, 2026 may be the year to try and salvage some of the organization’s dignity for giving him such a lucrative contract, barring any significant changes, with other options like that of Kyler Murray and Malik Willis linked to potential moves to the Dawg Pound.

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