Why is Pro Bowl tight endDavid Njoku leaving the Browns? I don't have any secret sources, or insider information, but I'm pretty sure I know. Hear me out on this.
Let's think about what happened to him when Todd Monken was the Browns Offensive Coordinator in 2019. Njoku became the fifth string tight end, that's what. That's hard to believe, because most teams hardly ever even carry five tight ends. But the 2019 Browns had Ricky Seals-Jones, Demetrius Harris, Steve Carlson, Pharaoh Brown, and Njoku. Njoku was dead last in snaps, with only 99 for the season, and he was not injured.
Njoku had only 41 yards receiving with Monken as the OC, after a 639 yard season the year before. It would be fair to say that Monken, as well as Head Coach Freddie Kitchens, had very low regard for Njoku's ability and did as much as they could to wreck his confidence.
So why would Njoku want to be reunited with Monken?
The whole thing probably started when General Manager John Dorsey wanted Njoku to become a better blocker. Okay, fine. That was true. All players, especially young ones, need to improve. The fact of the matter is that Njoku made a dramatic improvement and by 2020 was a much more complete player. But in 2019, oh my God, Coach Freddie Kitchens and OC Monken had an absolute cow and decided their 639 yard tight end wasn't worth developing.
Njoku was an outstanding blocker and receiver and he went on to become a Pro Bowler despite the unsteady quarterback situation in Cleveland. He is probably among the top five tight ends in Browns history behind Ozzie Newsome, Kellen Winslow, Jr., and Milt Morin. Fans of Jordan Cameron and Gary Barnidge might put up a fuss, but I've got Njoku as number four.
Now, here's the kicker. If Njoku leaves, there will be a $24.3 million dollar charge to the 2026 salary cap (by the way, in an earlier article, I listed the voidable year charge incorrectly as $13.9 million. It's actually an even more appalling $24.3 million). If you haven't heard about "voidable years," you are going to find out about them in 2026. Briefly, the NFL salary rules allow bonus money to be charged to future years, but if the player leaves or is traded, the bonus money charges are moved up to the current fiscal year. In Njoku's case, he had four years of salary but bonus money was charged over a seven-year interval, including 2026, 2027, 2028 and 2029. When he leaves, all of that $24.3 million gets charged immediately to the 2026 cap. You thought Deshaun's contract was bad for the Browns? Yes, but there are other deals that are going to sting just as bad when you add them up.
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