A fired head coach, a bottom-tier offense, and a five-win season have left the Cleveland Browns in a familiar, frustrating position: starting over. For a franchise staring at a -$10 million cap deficit and no clear answer at quarterback, a ‘perfect’ offseason isn’t a luxury—it’s the only way to avoid another lost season. But their path to salvation is narrower than most fans think.

With a lot of questions surrounding Cleveland, what would the best offseason look like for the Browns?

Who to Cut?

The Browns are in a really rough place. Entering the offseason, we’re $10 million over the salary cap. We have some moves to make to free up some cap space, but there aren’t many moves that will free up a chunk of cap space.

The most logical cuts are left guard Tyre Phillips and wide receiver Cedric Tillman. Moving on from Tillman was tough. I believe he has a lot of promise, but the production hasn’t been there. Cutting these players saves us around $5 million in cap space.

Restructures

Most of our money will come from restructures.

Our first restructure is the obvious one, restructuring quarterback Deshaun Watson‘s contract and freeing up $25.4 million in cap space. Notably, we only restructured his deal for 2026, trying to limit his contract’s impact for the future.

Our next move is restructuring cornerback Denzel Ward’s contract. This move will free up another $14.3 million in cap space.

With all the moves we made, we have around $30 million sitting in cap space. Not as much as we’d like, but enough to make significant moves in free agency.

Free Agency

Our big signing of free agency is tackle Jawaan Taylor. The veteran tackle had his struggles with the Kansas City Chiefs, but gets a new chance to anchor our offensive line. This deal will include a possible out after the season.

We continue to add on offense, agreeing to a budget deal with wide receiver Gabe Davis. The former Buffalo Bills receiver still has plenty of promise in his career, and makes a quality starting piece on our offense.

Going to defense, we have limited cap space left, so we add depth pieces in safety Chauncey Gardner-Johnson and edge rusher Azeez Ojulari. Each player signed a one-year deal.

The Draft

Our offseason will shine in the 2026 NFL Draft. After a trade down in 2025 earned us another first-round pick in 2026, we have plenty of resources to add to the team.

1.6 WR Carnell Tate, Ohio State

Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate has all the makings of a star wideout in the NFL. Tate’s draft stock was tainted a bit after the NFL Combine, when he ran a 4.53 40-yard dash, but his skills and frame outweigh a drill many argue is pointless.

Tate has the body control and route running to succeed in the NFL. His 6-foot-2 frame will allow him to be a traditional boundary receiver, but his skillset will be a better fit for the slot. Most impressively from his game, Tate works well in traffic and is a contested catch target.

1.24 OT Max Iheanachor, Arizona State

Arizona State offensive tackle Max Iheanachor may seem like a reach here, but there was a run on offensive tackles, and I like Iheanachor’s upside.

At 6-foot-6, Iheanachor weighs 321 pounds and has impressive 33 7/8″ arms. The Arizona State tackle was impressive at the combine, running a 4.91 40-yard dash, and landing a 9’7″ broad jump. While there are concerns about his play strength, there’s a lot of upside for Iheanachor to develop in our offense.

2.39 OG Chase Bisontis, Texas A&M

Continuing to add to the offensive line, we add Texas A&M guard Chase Bisontis.

At 6-foot-5, Bisontis has great size and had a good performance at the combine. There are concerns about his shorter arms, but they aren’t a significant worry on the interior. Bisontis is one of my favorite day two prospects, and I’m happy to grab him here in the second-round.

3.70 CB Keionte Scott, Miami

I’m surprised to see Miami cornerback Keionte Scott still available here in the third-round. Scott is a versatile cornerback who excels in the slot.

His production is that of an outside linebacker, but he can cover wideouts. Scott can rush the passer, play in the box, and play well in the slot. There are concerns about him in coverage, specifically revolving around double moves and a lack of discipline, but he’s a steal here early in the third-round.

Recap

Additions

• WR Gabe Davis
• OT Jawaan Taylor
• S Chauncey Gardner-Johnson
• EDGE Azeez Ojulari
• WR Carnell Tate
• OT Max Iheanachor
• OG  Chase Bisontis
• CB Keionte Scott

Losses

• LG Tyre Phillips
• WR Cedric Tillman

Cleveland has some cap hoops to jump through, but afterwards, we are able to build a solid lineup around Shedeur Sanders. In this rebuild, it appears the Browns are betting a lot on Sanders and hoping he can take a year-two leap.