DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Browns Extend David Njoku

As a believer in Njoku, I like this.

I'm a Njoku believer too but that's quite the contract. The FO and Stefanski must REALLY like his upside......and I do too.

So it says he is averaging $14MM+ a year and gets $28MM guaranteed so it looks like on the surface it might just be a two year deal if this thing flops the team can bow out?? Clearly they felt more comfortable with Njoku at this amount that Hooper at his.

Curious to see the contract breakdown.

148 catches in 5-years nets Njoku 56.75 million for 4-years. To think people complained about Hoopers deal and now the Browns are paying 14.75M more for the lessor productive of the two. I sure hope he gets a hell of a lot better, averaging 14.1875M per year for less than 30 catches is questionable in any FO's book except Cleveland.

That is a lot of money for a S L O W footed TE who can barely catch passes.

Njoku is not considered slow footed by any standard for TEs

Torn in the amount but glad they kept him, hope he breaks out this year.

I notice you didn't address the second part of that!

Njoku will be given the opportunity be the #1 and shine in this offense. Looking forward to seeing him in that role with Watson throwing him the ball. He's improved all around every year.

I think Stefanski will have Njoku flexed out more this year.

It ain't my money......but that's a lot of cash.

I will. Njoku's hands have improved every year to the point that I would call him "sure-handed" and not blink.

Catchable rate of 68%in 2021.

True catchable rate of 84% in 2021- this comes from one of many sites that try to get catch rates based on the real opportunities to catch a ball as the general catch rate is simply targets and receptions.

I'm ever the optimist with him, so I sure hope he fills into the contract and makes it look like a steal.

I think DW will make our offense and receivers much better including Njoku. I think Andrew Berry sees this and that is why Njoku got the contract he did.

Another big bet that hinges on Watson actually playing. If Watson gets tossed for the year or longer, it’s a bad bet, if Watson gets the 6-8 games Browns fans are hoping for, it’s potentially a good bet.

Did you not see his touchdown catch in the Chargers game last year? My grandmother could have outrun him!

I think you used the key word here which is a problem for a veteran of the NFL like Njoku.... we are still talkin about "Potential". Njoku undoubtedly has the potential. He's been way shot of of earning the contract he just signed. I would think there's as much chance of him living up to that contract as he does of falling short. I think he's improved the last 2 seasons ... hoping he can take that final step and be the player he has flashed - but instead of disappearing for multiple game stretches, I hope he's "Thant Guy" every game.

As my h.s. coach told us: If people say you have potential it simply means you haven't done it yet.

I'd say that describes njoku to a tee

Sounds like grandma needs to enter the National Senior Games with that speed! Surefire winner.

https://nsga.com/howtoqualify/

He really just started coming into his own the last two years but really has yet to dominate, so that's a very NJOKU friendly contract if you ask me. They must expect a huge increase in the cap the next few years. Spending like they got it.

I agree, so many have been told you have the potential, yet aren't playing . Because the coach was wrong.

chiiiiiiefffffff!!

J/C I think this is a good Re-sign. We, as fans have hated in the past when we have allowed players to leave and they have thrived elsewhere ie(M Schwartz, J Poyer etc). Njoku seems as if he has been here quite a while but he is still only 25!!! I believe he was the youngest player in that draft. I think some fans see the money and think WOW thats a lot for him, However QB play, Multiple coordinators and all the other Browns crap did affect him too. He absolutely struggled with blocking and some focus drops early in his career but in the last 2 he has been outstanding to the point where we just sent Austin Hooper packing (how about that waste of $). David has grown up and I think his best football is in front of him. To re-sign a guy we drafted is another Team builder, "if you perform we pay" is huge among the players. 2 years from now his contract will look average, a lot of good young TE's out there and more coming in this years draft

I wonder if this lowers his cap hit for this year

Njoku averaged 2.8 targets a game over the past 2 yrs. I hope he gets more than that this season.

j/c...

Dude better put up some impressive numbers and make a few Pro Bowls with that kind of scratch.

Two years $28 million for Njoku isn’t horrible. I’d rather have let him play on the franchise tag but the team must believe in him.

One PB would be terrific. I’m thinking he has to catch 50 balls, minimum, a few TDs that help us win, and block hard to earn his money.

Njoku is one of the most overrated players in Browns history. That is a big commitment to a guy who hasn't done anything to earn that contract.

Hooper may not have played well here, but at least he had a history of production. Harrison Bryant is better than Joke. I hope we don't forget about him while we try to force feed the ball to Joke in an effort to justify the signing.

I hope it works out. Berry lost a little bit of shine in my eyes, but nothing that can't be polished again if Joke plays well.

DN is a special player with mad skills that haven't been used well to date, the Browns brass who watch film know this and paid accordingly. Fans aren't likely to see these things the Brass and staff has.

I thought last year he would really light it up and he did when the ball came his way. I look for him to be huge going forward.

I understand the prices are going up. If it turns out that Joke is in a middling contract for a TE, cool. At least that is closer to what he has done thus far.

Like I said, I hope I am wrong. I really do.

Hooper had a history of high targets on a team that had opponents focused on Julio Jones.

Last season, Hooper had 61 targets for 345 yards and 3 TDs.
Last season, Njoku had 53 targets for 475 yards and 4 TDs.

Njoku isn't the most overrated player in Browns history. He has been poorly utilized or at least utilized in a limited fashion. In the one year we did target Njoku consistently, he had similar production to Hooper, who made his 1st pro bowl that season. Hooper did it with Matt Ryan. Njoku did it with Tyrod Taylor and rookie Baker. Teams weren't particularly worried about getting beat deep by Jarvis Landry, Callaway, Perriman, and Higgins.

What happens in games is really only a small fraction of what guys do to earn their contracts. Njoku has put in the work (which is what this FO/Coaching staff preach) and outperformed a two-time pro bowl TE despite fewer opportunities. His time is now. Here's to him proving Berry right. You want to pay for future production rather than past when putting together contracts. We'll see how good Berry's powers of prediction are.

At least he isn't talking about wanting a trade.

We will find out if he is just a guy or is a legit TE. I hope you and many others are right.

Kevin Stefanski will have no excuses this year

Every time Stefanski works a play that has thrown to Harrison Bryant over the last 2 years, it ends up a play where the Browns did not get the ball into one of their superstars hands.

Marty Schottenheimer had no trouble, (on offense), getting the ball into his superstars' hands.
Jerry Glanville did not either. Surely dozens of other coaches could get the ball into their superstars hands on offense, And I'm not talking about a one yard pass, or a zero yard pass, or an end around hand off.

Every Time Harrison Bryant has been targeted over the past 2 years, The Browns had ONE Play, where they did not aim the ball into one of their superstars hands. Every time Harrison Bryant was targeted was a time that they did not target one of their others, like Hooper, or OBJ, or Jarvis, or Chubb, or Kareem Hunt, or Higgins, or even Njoku.

Now, if one of these posts above^ said that Njoku averaged 2.5 targets per game over the last 2 years. THEN WHOSE FAULT IS THAT? I'm looking at Stefanski?
Nobody yet has said who the buck stops with on this offense, when I've asked. Who is responsible for this Browns offense, what coach? or Who?

If These Browns, Can't get the ball to anybody but Harrison Bryant, and some back up Fullback, in crunch times' on critical downs in games,
Then somebody is going to have to take responsibility, eventually
It's not like they have a bunch of Stephen Carlsons' on the other side, you have Stars on your team, USE THEM.

When these wheels fall off in 2022 and don't turn we all know right back where we'll be, with a (can't leave their hands off of it) ownership, we'll be right back at s'uare one in I2 months with a New Coach and a new line of make believe.