As the Cleveland Browns are looking to bolster their roster heading into next year, they just got some fortunate salary cap news.
As a plus to their desire to target big-name free agents this offseason, the Browns are just over the salary cap by $7.7 million while having $30 million in rollover cap (via Spencer German on Twitter)
Spotrac has the #Browns over the cap by just $7.7 million with $30 million in rollover cap added in and the rule of 51 applied.
— 𝚂𝚙𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚛 𝙶𝚎𝚛𝚖𝚊𝚗 (@Spencito_) February 23, 2024
The Rule of 51 dictates that the current salary cap only counts for the 51 most expensive players on the roster.
The rule extends until the start of the new NFL season and provides additional leeway for teams during free agency.
All in all, the Browns’ current salary cap sits at $286,090,254, which includes just under $15 million in dead cap space, which is guaranteed salary yet to be paid out.
As such, the Browns might be able to pull off a big free agent signing that fans are hoping for.
Namely, that they hit the market hard and target a top wide receiver, such as Mike Evans, Gabe Davis, Tee Higgins, or Calvin Ridley.
Being so close to the salary cap might also mean that the Browns can bring back last season’s hero, Joe Flacco, who is likely to fetch decent money as either a backup or a starter.
Part of the reason that the Browns are so close to the salary cap is because it rose this offseason from $224.8 million to $255.4 million.
However, if the Browns are serious about adding big names to the roster for next year, more work has to be done.
That could mean making trades, cutting players, or reworking contracts to free up cap space.
NEXT: Analyst Has Strong Message About Recent Browns Reports
