While no official source has indicated the Cleveland Browns and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah are close to a contract extension, one lone and anonymous X (formerly known as Twitter) user says the linebacker is close to striking a new deal.
I know what you are thinking: why are you writing up a news piece based on an anonymous scoop from @PrettyRickey213? Well, because he has a track record I can show as well.
- Like when he broke the new deals for quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa and Jordan Love before Adam Schefter or Ian Rappoport did.
- Or the time he stated the Jacksonville Jaguars and Trevor Lawrence had a done deal before it was announced (and that they weren’t done yet as they would then extend cornerback Tyson Campbell).
- Or when he first reported the Justin Jefferson extension with the Minnesota Vikings.
- Or the time he bested Schefter who doubled down that Jared Goff’s extension was not imminent when Pretty Rickey stated it was.
- He was also correct on a ton of free agency signings, but his account was suspended and he had to create a new one where those takes are lost in the abyss.
My point is that while Pretty Rickey remains anonymous, probably due to some job he has in the NFL sphere where he does not want to reveal himself, he has a proven track record.
And his next scoop is that the Browns and Owusu-Koramoah are nearing a new deal that is expected to be finalized before the start of the season.
The Cleveland #Browns have made big progress on a contract extension for Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and expect to have something done by the start of the season #DawgPound pic.twitter.com/286pW0l705
— Rickey (@prettyrickey213) August 1, 2024
Owusu-Koramoah had a breakout season for the Browns in 2023, including a nod to the Pro Bowl. The Browns are now placing more on the shoulders of Owusu-Koramoah after the departures of Sione Takitaki and Anthony Walker Jr., as they expect him to wear the green dot on his helmet to signify which player has the communication system in their helmet to relay coverages and alignments from the sideline.
This would mean the Browns expect Owusu-Koramoah to be on the field on all three downs this season. The linebacker market, however, is a bit tricky due to the contract the Chicago Bears gave Tremaine Edmunds a year ago in free agency.
Edmunds, who was 25 years old when he received his second deal, was given $18 million average per year on his contract. This year, however, the highest-paid linebacker contract was Patrick Queen and the Pittsburgh Steelers at just $13.67 million average per year.
Owusu-Koramoah, who won’t turn 25 until near the end of the season in 2024, has the age and production to argue for the contract of Edmunds, but the market has clearly returned to that of Queen. More than likely, the Browns and Owusu-Koramoah have a deal set somewhere in the middle but closer to the deal of Queen. This would slot around $14 million average per year.
Again, Pretty Rickey is the only one to report on this deal at this point, but there is plenty of reason to put some stock into his scoop. Can the Browns and Owusu-Koramoah get pen-to-paper before the start of the season?
