CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – Veteran safety John Johnson III is the first official salary cap casualty of the offseason.
Johnson will be released next month when the new league year begins Browns executive vice president of football operations and general manager Andrew Berry confirmed at the NFL Combine, which is taking place this week in Indianapolis.
“John, really [the] first thought is just gratitude in terms of what he's done the past two years on the field and in the locker room,” Berry said. “For us we did after just looking at the roster and thinking about where we want to be in 2023 thought would be the best move for the organization to really part ways, but that certainly doesn't minimize what John was able to do while he was with our team.”
Johnson, who was scheduled to receive a $1 million roster bonus in March, was entering the final year of a three-year, $33.75 million deal he signed as a free agent in 2021 that included $24 million guaranteed.
Johnson was scheduled to be a $13.5 million salary cap charge, seventh highest on the team but if the Browns designate him a post June 2 cut, the team will save over $9.5 million in cap space as opposed to less than a million if the team made it a standard cut.
The Browns currently are $14 million over the 2023 salary cap and league rules require the team to be under the cap by the start of the new league year March 15 at 4 p.m. eastern.
Johnson combined for 101 tackles, half a sack and an interception last season that saw the secondary rife with communication breakdowns that led to big plays, and ultimately losses.