Denzel Ward's new contract with Cleveland Browns makes him highest-paid CB in NFL history

The Browns have locked down a franchise cornerstone at cornerback.

The team and Denzel Ward agreed to a record-setting five-year, $100.5 million contract extension on Monday, a person familiar with the deal confirmed. The extension includes $71.25 million guaranteed.

Agent Tory Dandy broke the news through ESPN.

A Nordonia High School and Ohio State product, Ward will be under contract with his hometown NFL team through the 2027 season.

With an average annual salary of $20.1 million in new money, Ward is the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history, slightly topping Los Angeles Rams five-time Pro Bowl cornerback Jalen Ramsey's $20 million per year. Ward's $71.25 million guaranteed also edges Ramsey's previous record of $71.2 million guaranteed, according to spotrac.com.

Ramsey, who signed a five-year, $100 million extension in September 2020, congratulated Ward on Twitter.

"I been waiting on somebody else to touch that 100 club & you DEFINITELY DESERVE IT @denzelward … congrats," Ramsey wrote.

Ward replied to Ramsey by tweeting, "Respect! Appreciate you brotha. Let’s keep going!"

The extension represents an ideal scenario for Ward, who is expected to sign the deal as early as Tuesday, when the Browns begin their voluntary offseason workout program at team headquarters in Berea.

Ward's agent, Dandy, and the Browns began contractual talks in the spring. Before the extension materialized, Ward had been under contract through the 2022 season, when he'll be due $13.294 million guaranteed as a result of General Manager Andrew Berry exercising the fifth-year option on the player's rookie deal in April 2021.

"Loss of words," Ward tweeted. "I’m blessed. I want to thank the Haslams, JW Johnson, Andrew Berry, coach [Kevin] Stefanski and the rest of the Browns organization for continuing to to believe in the home grown kid and allowing me to represent this organization and city of Cleveland where I’m from.

"And big shout out and respect to my agent @ToryDandy of CAA sports on the work he put in to finalize my contract. Still work to be done Cleveland but I’m here to stay and work towards what we all set out to do when playing this game! #win!"

Nordonia High School football coach Jeff Fox was ecstatic to hear the news about his former pupil Monday. Not only is Ward a star player, but he also received the Browns' 2021 Walter Payton Man of the Year award, which recognizes exceptional on-field performance and dedication to the community.

“I'm just happy for him and his family," Fox told the Beacon Journal by phone. "It couldn't happen to better people. He's worked extremely hard for this opportunity since I met him when he was a freshman in high school, and he continues to do that now.

“He was a great teammate, he was always a great student and a good representation of our school. He continues to be that, being a great teammate and a good representation of our community when you see him get nominated for Walter Payton awards."

Ward's father, Paul, died of cardiac arrest in a spin class on May 2, 2016, at the age of 46. In 2019, Ward and his family launched the Make Them Know Your Name Foundation to bring awareness to heart health and help prevent heart-related fatalities.

As part of the foundation's mission, Ward held a free skills camp for about 400 children three years ago at Nordonia. Fox said there are plans to hold another youth football clinic in late May at Nordonia after the COVID-19 pandemic put the event on hold for the past couple of years.

"It's pretty special for [Ward] to be the whole package and continue to represent us so well," Fox said. "It's humbling that we get to be a small part of his story.”

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Ward, who will turn 25 on April 28, is coming off his best season in the NFL.

In 2021, Ward earned the second Pro Bowl selection of his career, compiling 43 tackles, a half sack, a team-high 10 passes defensed and three interceptions in 15 games. His 99-yard interception return for a touchdown proved to be one of the highlights of a disappointing 8-9 season and helped the Browns triumph 41-16 over the eventual AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals on Nov. 7 in Cincinnati.

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Former Browns GM John Dorsey drafted Ward fourth overall in 2018, when he became a Pro Bowl selection as a rookie.

Ward led the NFL with 15 passes defensed and had been on track to make another Pro Bowl in 2020, but he suffered a strained calf during a dominant November performance against the Philadelphia Eagles and missed the next three games.

Ward later contracted COVID-19, missing the regular-season finale and a wild-card playoff win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. He returned for a divisional-round loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

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When Ward has been healthy, he has been one of the better cornerbacks in the league. He has started 51 of the 52 regular-season games in which he has appeared in four seasons, compiling 186 tackles, a half sack, 50 passes defensed, 10 interceptions (two returned for a touchdown), two forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and four quarterback hits.

According to ESPN Stats & Information, Ward is ranked third in the league in completion percentage allowed when targeted (53.5%) since 2018.

In 12 games in 2020, Ward had 46 tackles, a career-high 18 passes defensed, two interceptions, a forced fumble and a QB hit.

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Injuries, however, have been a recurring issue for Ward.

Two concussions cost him three games late in the 2018 season. A hamstring injury sidelined him for four games in 2019. The strained calf and COVID-19 in 2020 forced him to miss five games, including one in the playoffs. A hamstring injury and another bout with COVID-19 sidelined him for two games in 2021.

Still, Ward is a top-tier player at a premium position. He gives the Browns a coveted presence in coverage while All-Pro end Myles Garrett supplies an elite pass rush. Garrett is under contract through 2026 after receiving a five-year, $125 million extension from Berry in July 2020.

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Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Denzel Ward, Browns agree to record-setting contract extension