The Cleveland Browns have locked up another cornerstone of their secondary, signing safety Grant Delpit to a three-year, $48 million extension with $35 million guaranteed.
The agreement came on the first day of training camp and one day after Cleveland finalized a record-setting extension with cornerback Denzel Ward. The Browns have now committed more than $110 million in new money to two of their most important defensive players.
Delpit was entering the final year of the three-year, $36 million extension he signed in 2023. His new deal carries an average annual value of $16 million and ensures that he will remain part of Cleveland’s defense beyond this season.
Grant Delpit Locked in With Browns
Delpit’s absence from the field during the team’s offseason workouts created questions about his contract situation. The 27-year-old did not participate in voluntary workouts and attended mandatory minicamp without practicing. The Browns never indicated that Delpit was holding out, but an extension was an obvious priority with the veteran safety approaching the final year of his deal.
The Browns selected Delpit with the No. 44 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft after he won the Jim Thorpe Award at LSU. His career got off to a difficult start when he tore his Achilles during training camp and missed his entire rookie season.
Delpit has since developed into one of Cleveland’s most dependable defensive players. He has appeared in 78 games, making 68 starts, and has recorded 451 tackles, seven interceptions, 21 passes defended and 6.5 sacks. Delpit started 16 games last season and finished with 89 tackles, three sacks, one interception, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
New Browns defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg wants to play aggressively, and Delpit is a great fit for the mentality.
“It’s always going to be style over scheme,” Rutenberg said during his introductory press conference. “No matter what, the way we play, how hard we play, playing for each other, how fast we play and how violent we play. And that’s always going to be over scheme.
“Us going after the ball and then putting our players in the best positions to be successful, it’s always going to start with the front. It forever and always will in the history of football. And we’re going to continue to do that.”
Browns Must Replace Myles Garrett’s Impact
Cleveland traded Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams in June for edge rusher Jared Verse and three draft picks. The blockbuster ended Garrett’s nine-year run with the Browns and removed the most accomplished pass rusher in franchise history from the lineup.
Garrett finished his final season in Cleveland with an NFL-record 23 sacks, surpassing the previous mark of 22.5 shared by Michael Strahan and T.J. Watt. The Browns finished third in the NFL with 53 sacks, but nearly half of that production came from Garrett.
Verse gives Cleveland a young and explosive replacement on the edge, but no single player can be expected to immediately reproduce Garrett’s impact. Opposing offenses routinely dedicated extra blockers to block Garrett and quarterbacks got rid of the ball quickly, creating opportunities for the rest of the defense. Without that advantage, more responsibility will fall on Ward, Delpit and the rest of the secondary.
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