Browns Reportedly Unlikely to Bring Back Joe Schobert Due to Contract Demands
By Jack Murphy
The Cleveland Browns underperformed in 2019, as they finished the season 6-10, which notched them third place in the AFC North. They may be entering the 2020 season with a new look in their linebacker core.
According to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, Joe Schobert is expected to leave in free agency as the Browns are not willing to pay him his market price at $10 million.
It's no longer Scho-time in Cleveland: LB Joe Schobert will hit the free agent market and won't be back with the #Browns, who aren't willing to meet his $10M-plus market price, source says https://t.co/XSupyDhHBo
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) February 29, 2020
Cleveland is not prepared to pay the 2017 Pro Bowler the money he is asking for because they are expected to make a big investment into improving their offensive line around Baker Mayfield. They are also expected to let Oliver Vernon walk, who is the highest-paid player on the team.
Schobert spent all four of his NFL seasons with the Cleveland Browns and recorded 100 tackles in three of them. He will be a great pick up for any team that is in need of improvement on their front seven.
Joe Schobert was 5th in the league at LB in defensive stops in 2019.
— C.D. Moore (@FredasBoss) February 29, 2020
The Browns are shedding cap space quickly. In this case, let's hope they have a backup plan for the loss of a very productive linebacker.