The Cleveland Browns have a big decision to make as it is time for teams to choose whether or not to pick up the fifth-year options of 2020 NFL Draft first rounders. This means the Browns have to choose whether or not to add that fifth year to the contract of former 10th overall pick and left tackle Jedrick Wills. We know his number will come in just over $14 million in 2024 if the Browns opted to pick up the option.
Here we look at the pros and cons of picking up the extra year of Wills’ contract and what there may be to sort through.
Reasons against picking up Wills' 5th-year option
The reasoning behind some of the criticism Wills receives is completely valid. He is not a consistent performer, and his lows are extraordinarily low on tape. The effort to play from whistle to whistle has not been a positive theme for Wills throughout his career, as he leaves those watching wanting to bang their head on a wall.
This past season was also his first completely healthy season as well, playing all 17 games. He missed two games as a rookie, and four in his second season as he tried to play through a high ankle sprain that got rolled up on Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs.
His inability to stack multiple weeks, making his performance a virtual coin flip each game also leaves the team not knowing exactly which Wills will show up on gameday. His run blocking throughout his career has been subpar as well.
There are plenty of reasons to be concerned about the inconsistent and at times effortless play of Wills, however, there are still plenty of reasons the Browns may decide to pick up his fifth year.
Who knows? Maybe turning away his fifth-year option would light a fire under Wills in 2023 to go out and earn a long-term extension with the Browns with no guarantee to his contract beyond this upcoming season.
Who else would play left tackle for the Browns?
The alternative to passing on Wills’ fifth-year option leads to one of two avenues: you move on from him this offseason and start a new guy at left tackle, or you let him earn a contract extension in a make-or-break year in 2023. If he is on the roster, he is going to start. Point blank.
The clamoring for 2021 fourth rounder James Hudson is out there, despite being an extremely poor pass blocker, including stretches or relief play where he was a revolving door that led to a waterfall of free rushers. As the Browns’ offense looks to create more explosive plays in the passing game, downgrading pass blockers (and by a significant margin at that according to PFF) is not going to allow for receivers and quarterbacks to connect vertically down the field.
Looking at the free agents that are set to hit the market this offseason as well, the list is not pretty. Former first round pick Andre Dillard is an option as a depth piece, but he has started just nine games through four years with the Philadelphia Eagles despite being the 22nd overall pick in the draft.
Offensive tackle is the second-most important position in the sport, and not one a team can just decide to upgrade unless they are starting a bottom-of-the-barrel like Greg Robinson the year before. Wills has excelled as a pass blocker and is a league-average tackle. Creating a need where there is not one is not a risk this team can make, especially considering the assets they will have to sink into the defensive side of the football this offseason.
The cap number is not that steep
Zooming out from the actual figure a bit, $14 million is not a significant cap hit at the tackle position if the Browns were to pick up the fifth-year option of Wills. That number would make Wills the 16th-highest-paid offensive tackle in the league today. However, that number would not kick in until the 2024 season and after two more bouts of free agency.
In all likelihood, by the time Wills would enter his fifth season, that fifth-year option figure could make him just the 20th-highest-paid left tackle in the NFL. This does not include right tackles either, as there are currently, in the winter of 2023 before free agency, six right tackles making more than that figure as well.
By the time this figure would kick in for Wills, he would be about the 25th-highest-paid tackle in the NFL. His value is not determined by his play as much as it is by how the other guys around him get paid. And paying him a top-25 salary at the position is in no way too high of a price tag.
He still has the tools to take a big leap
We saw this with tight end David Njoku. While Njoku struggled through the first three seasons of his career, a flip switched after the franchise signed Austin Hooper. While his targets were down, his production remained steady over the last two seasons of his rookie contract, and his blocking took a tremendous leap forward.
Wills, who will be just 24 years old this upcoming May, is still quite young and has the athletic tools that are worth banking on. His foot speed is tremendous, and when he is engaged, he has top-tier hands to land snatch traps and to toss defenders out of rush lanes.
The lapses in concentration and consistency, however, have marred the career of Wills to this point. He graded out as an elite pass-blocker in four games this season but also posted ugly pass-blocking grades in three separate games as well. Wills always seems to dominate against Trey Hendrickson, but he doesn’t get to play the Bengals every game of the season.
Every tool Wills needs to succeed is within him, but it is up to him to bring them out consistently. He has not reached anywhere near his ceiling to this point in his career, and that may be worth taking a chance on for the Browns.
Final thoughts on Jedrick Wills and the decision the Browns have to make
Wills has put himself in a position where his fifth-year option truly has to be thought out. As he enters his fourth season, the Browns and those who watch every week would have rather him dominate from day-one and make this choice a no-brainer. But that is not where we stand.
He’s inconsistent, lacks the will to play through the whistle on a down-to-down basis, and has struggled as a run blocker throughout his career. However, he has also been one of the better pass blockers upfront for the Browns.
His cap number on that fifth-year is nowhere near crippling or detrimental to the books, and he still has a ceiling he has yet to scratch given the athletic tools he has displayed both at the combine and on the field for the Browns. At just 24 years of age, there is a strong reason to believe the newly extended Bill Callahan can still pull it out of him.
Playing the second-most important position in the sport, the Browns cannot just up and replace a guy who is league average all things considered. At just $14 million in 2024, Wills’ fifth-year option is worth the risk for the Browns.
