After days of speculation it is official. The Odell Beckham Jr. Era is over in Cleveland.
In the wake of an ongoing saga that came to a head the past few days, the Cleveland Browns have released the wide receiver, and Beckham will not hit the waiver market. Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network had the official news this morning:
Sources: The #Browns are releasing star WR Odell Beckham Jr., as the two sides came together on a resolution to end his Cleveland tenure. At long last, he’s out and he’ll head to waivers.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 5, 2021
As was previously reported, the organization and Beckham worked to restructure his deal, making it easier for a team to claim him — and his contract — on the waiver market.
The organization released a statement after the move from General Manager and Executive Vice President Andrew Berry:
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 5, 2021
As for what teams will entertain signing Beckham, the terms of any potential restructured contract will go a long way towards answering that question. According to OverTheCap, only nine teams have enough cap space at the moment to sign Beckham at his current deal:
- Jacksonville Jaguars: $28 million
- Philadelphia Eagles: $21 million
- Denver Broncos: $15.5 million
- Seattle Seahawks: $13.4 million
- Carolina Panthers: $11.8 million
- Washington Football Team: $11.4 million
- Los Angeles Chargers: $11.1 million
- Pittsburgh Steelers: $10.8 million
- Cincinnati Bengals: $9.7 million
The team from that group that might make the most sense? The Jacksonville Jaguars, who could benefit from putting some talent around Trevor Lawrence. Perhaps also the Los Angeles Chargers, as you could add Beckham into the mix along with Keenan Allen and Mike Williams in the passing game, giving Justin Herbert another weapon.
Now, a restructured deal could make Beckham affordable for more teams, so we await the news of any such contract movement. Until then, however, let the speculation begin!