Newly acquired linebacker Deion Jones will hit free agency at the end of the 2022 season as he and the Cleveland Browns have terminated the last year of his deal. While Jones was scheduled to make over $13 million in 2023, none of it guaranteed, the Browns, Jones, and his agent have eliminated the conversation of an inevitable contract restructure next offseason.
With this move, the Browns do right by both Jones and his agent by letting him test the market should he rebuild his standing in the NFL over the next 11 games. Even if the Browns and Jones work together on a contract extension, there is little chance he even sniffs the amount he would have been due. If Jones packs his bags and signs elsewhere in free agency, then he becomes a piece of the compensatory pick formula.
All-in-all, this move continues to look non-consequential for the Browns as they ultimately just swapped a sixth rounder for a seventh rounder for an 11-game rental of Jones should he return from Injured Reserve this week. If he fills a need for the Browns, he could be back on lesser money. If he continues on his downward trajectory, then no harm, no foul for the Browns.
