Chomps
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- Mar 18, 2019
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They’ve added defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson, and they could soon be landing another high-profile defensive lineman, eventually.
Steve Doerschuk of the Canton Repository reports that the Browns have “ongoing interest” in Buccaneers defensive tackle Gerald McCoy.
The third overall pick in the 2010 draft, the 31-year-old McCoy has been available for much of the offseason, but no deal has even been regarded as close. Doerschuk suggests that running back Duke Johnson could be the bait for a Tampa Bay trade.
Signed through 2021, McCoy is due to earn $13 million in 2019, $12.5 million in 2020, and nearly $13 million in the final year of his contract.
Doerschuk points out that coach Bruce Arians has expressed ambivalence about paying so much to McCoy, given the reality that at his age McCoy’s performance could begin to dip. The question then becomes whether the Browns would be willing to pay McCoy $13 million this year, or whether they’d want to pay him less.
And if the Browns won’t be taking McCoy’s contract as is, his better play could be to dig in his feet and wait to be cut, picking his next team instead of his next team picking him.
Whether it’s Cleveland or elsewhere, it seems increasingly clear that McCoy won’t be playing for the Buccaneers in 2019.