Browns Move on From Surprise Veteran in New Insider Projection

The Cleveland Browns are coming out of their bye week to host the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. While they are hoping to salvage their season by finishing out as a more competitive and relevant team, fans have already turned their focus to next season.

The front office will have to do the same since difficult decisions await the Browns in the offseason. One of the more financially strapped teams in the league, the Browns have to find ways to cut salaries while also improving the team on the field.

Dan Graziano of ESPN identified some of the ways the Browns can do this by moving on from surprise veterans. One of the names he put out there was long-time Browns veteran Joel Bitonio. The 33-year-old who is in his 11th year with the team could potentially be a cap casualty in the offseason, per Graziano.

"The Browns have bigger cap and cash problems...but Bitonio has reached an age and contract inflection point where he and the team have to figure out how much longer he'll be there and how much he'll get paid in that time."

- Dan Graziano, ESPN

While acknowledging that the bigger problem in Cleveland is Deshaun Watson and his contract, Graziano wrote that moving on from Bitonio may be an easier option for the Browns. The All-Pro guard has one more year left on his deal and will earn $15 million in 2025. According to ESPN, the Browns can release him in the offseason and take on around $14.5 million in dead money.

Bitonio has long been one of the most competent veterans on the team. He has made the Pro Bowl in each of his last six seasons, providing the Browns with consistency and reliability that the fanbase isn't accustomed to. Considering his age and where the Browns are as a franchise, however, GM Andrew Berry may not have a choice but to let the former second-round pick walk in the spring.

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