Browns to sign Kenny Britt, so what does this mean for Terrelle Pryor?
The Cleveland Browns are about to commit big money to a late-blooming receiver with only one year of big production. And yet Terrelle Pryor remains unsigned.
Yes, the Browns — for the moment — have shifted their focus at receiver, poised to sign former Los Angeles Rams wideout Kenny Britt to a reported four-year, $32.5 million deal, with $17 million guaranteed. Britt had his breakout season a year ago despite the Rams’ offensive struggles, catching 68 passes for 1,002 yards (14.7 average), with five TDs.
In his eight-year career, Britt has caught 309 passes for 4,881 yards (15.8 average) with 30 TDs. After two strong seasons with the Tennessee Titans to start his career, Britt leveled off. He has spent the past three seasons with the Rams in St. Louis and L.A. and now moves to Cleveland, where he could be another key target for … whoever lines up at QB.
But what about Pryor? The Browns already drafted three receivers — including first-rounder Corey Coleman — last year and have $8 million per year sunk into Britt. Would they dig deep to retain Pryor, their one reliable offensive performer last season who appears to be ascending (and is younger than Britt)?
Perhaps. Salary-cap space isn’t the problem. The issue might be that Cleveland would have an inordinate amount of money at the position, and that might also prevent the team from developing its young players. Still, if the Browns go cheap at quarterback, which it appears likely they will relative to the market anyway, it could allow them to carry a lot of financial heft at receiver.
A lineup of Pryor and Britt outside, with Coleman inside, plus Gary Barnidge and Seth Devalve as the right ends would not be that unattractive for a quarterback. Then again, the Browns might not get Pryor back and likely still would need another receiver. Getting Britt helps, but he’s not a true go-to option, while Pryor most certainly was turning into a game-changer and the type of player defenses had to account for.
The Browns are having trouble giving their money away to decent players so far in free agency. One semi-big name was willing to bite. But they need more, including for one of their own to stick around. It’s unclear if that will happen now.
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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at edholm@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter!
