CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The Cleveland Browns terminated the contracts of defensive end Jadeveon Clowney and safety John Johnson III Wednesday.
Both players were released with post-June 1 designations to save the team over $14.5 million salary cap space.
listen to 92.3 the fan
Johnson, who signed a three-year, $33.75 million deal as a free agent in 2021 that included $24 million guaranteed, combined for 101 tackles, half a sack and an interception last season.
Johnson’s cap hit will be cut by $9.75 million.
Clowney signed a one-year, $10 million deal that included multiple voidable years on the back end to spread out his cap charge in 2022 making the termination of his contract procedural.
A standard release of Clowney would have resulted in the Browns being hit with a $6.4 million cap charge with the four voidable years being bundled for 2023, but they will save $4.8 million in cap room by kicking the balance into 2024.
Clowney fell out of favor during the final week of the season when he was left home from the season finale after ripping the organization and accusing the Browns of propping up Myles Garrett at his expense in an interview with Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.
Under terms of the collective bargaining agreement teams are permitted to use post-June 1 designations on a maximum of two players.