CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Browns cleared salary-cap space by releasing veteran linebacker Jamie Collins Wednesday, but that may not be the only move coming ahead of the start of the new league year next week.
According to Aditi Kinkhabwala of the NFL Network, the Browns could clear more salary-cap room by moving on from offensive lineman Kevin Zeitler.
The Browns were besieged by injuries and ineffectiveness on the offensive line during the 2016 season, and they sought to address that quickly at the start of the new league year by signing Zeitler in March of 2017.
Zeitler was the top-rated guard in free agency and the Browns’ front office made him the highest-paid interior linemen in the NFL. Prior to the signing, the 6-foot-4, 320-pound Zeitler proved plenty durable, playing in 72 games, with 71 starts, over his first five years in the NFL, and that did not change after his move up Interstate 71.
In his two years with the Browns, Zeitler made 32 consecutive starts.
When the Browns signed Zeitler to a five-year, $60 million contract, and in 2019, he is due $12.4 million. While Zeitler’s contract calls for a $12.4 million combined between his salary and signing bonus in 2020 and $14.4 million in 2021, the dead cap hit goes down significantly over the last three years of the deal.
After 2019, Zeitler’s dead cap hit goes from $10.7 million to $4.8 million in 2020 and $2.4 million for the 2021 season.
With the No. 33 overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the Browns selected former University of Nevada offensive lineman Austin Corbett, who was listed as a guard in the evaluation period, but worked at multiple positions along the line during the 2018 Senior Bowl.
The 6-foot-4, 306-pound Corbett cleared the way for a Nevada offense that averaged 28.1 points and 397.6 yards over the Wolfpack’s 12 games in the 2017 season.
Behind Corbett’s blocks, Nevada’s offense gained 4,771 yards and scored 45 touchdowns on 813 total plays during his final collegiate season.
The 6-foot-4, 306-pound Corbett made one start and appeared in 11 games for the Browns during the 2018 season.
