On Saturday, the Cleveland Browns pulled off the latest big-time trade to come through the NFL’s transaction wire in a March that has already been electric with big news and blockbuster deals—and that’s before free agency has even begun—when they dealt for Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Amari Cooper. As part of the resulting dominoes, the Browns are likely to set Jarvis Landry free.
Given the arrival of Cooper in Cleveland, the Browns are going to have to pay $20 million per year for their new import, which, according to reporter Jordan Schultz, leaves very little room for the $16 million and change owed to Landry, a veteran who has been with the team in each of the last four seasons.
With Landry reportedly on the outs, the team has already given him a chance to seek a trade, but what sounds more likely—per Schultz and also what makes more sense—is for the Browns to release him outright in the final year of a five-year, $75 million contract.
The Kansas City Chiefs are reportedly among the teams with their sights set on Cleveland Browns wide receiver Jarvis Landry
Not only did Schultz say Landry was likely to become a free agent himself after a long stint in Cleveland, but he also had a list of likely suitors, one that included the Kansas City Chiefs.
Reported this yesterday, but worth reiterating after Amari Cooper trade: #Browns highly likely to release Jarvis Landry, whose cap hit is $16.6M in 2022.
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) March 12, 2022
League sources say the 5x Pro Bowler will still have plenty of suitors as a FA, inc the #Pats, #Chiefs, #Titans and #Jets.
The Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, and New York Jets are the other teams on this list and the angles here are interesting. The Titans and Chiefs stand out as contenders above the others on the list, if Landry wants to chase a Super Bowl late in his career. He’s played eight seasons in Miami and Cleveland, so a winning culture and strong organization might be on the wish list here.
That said, the Titans have the same issue as the Chiefs in that if Landry wants to be an offensive focal point, he’s got a real problem in both places. The Titans are going to welcome Derrick Henry back as the offensive cornerstone for an offense that already has Julio Jones and A.J. Brown as proven targets. In K.C., of course, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce are the pillars and Landry would play third fiddle, albeit in a pass-heavy offense that would still easily net him 80-90 targets or more.
None of this matters, of course, if Landry isn’t set free or if a team decides to trade for him even with the bloated cap number. Some teams have almost too much space to work with and could be dangerous in that way. The idea of playing for Bill Belichick could also be alluring if Landry wanted to play a bigger offensive role and play for a respected coach. As for the Jets, that would be a pure money play but you can’t blame someone for grabbing all the cash they can while they can still play. As they say, money talks.
What we do know is this: the Chiefs are squarely in the conversation for pretty much any reliable wide receiver on the open market, and that ranges from JuJu Smith-Schuster to Allen Robinson to D.J. Chark. If Landry breaks free, you can definitely add him to the mix.