The Cleveland Browns have a new guard.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Cleveland Browns have a new guard.
The Browns are signing Zion Johnson to a three-year, $49.5 million contract.
The Los Angeles Chargers selected Brown with the 17th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. Johnson is 26. He turns 27 in November.
Johnson is the second major addition to the Browns' offensive line this offseason. Last week, Cleveland agreed to a trade with the Houston Texans to acquire tackle Tytus Howard.
According to ESPN, Johnson finished last season ranked second in run block win rate (79.3%) and had a career low of three penalties called on him in 2025.
Cleveland went 5-12 last season. Todd Monken replaces Kevin Stefanski, who was fired and joined the Atlanta Falcons as their new HC.
Who will Johnson be blocking for at QB? It's unknown. Deshaun Watson will compete with Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel for the Browns' starting spot next season. Suspension and injuries have limited Watson to 19 games since he arrived in Cleveland. Since making his Browns debut, Watson has posted a 33.1 Total QBR, which would be the lowest among qualified passers.
"Anytime that you have a player that at one time has exhibited the skill set at an elite level," first-year Browns coach Todd Monken said of Watson. "I think you're always going to give them the benefit of the doubt that somehow we might be able to get that out of him again, and I think that's how you should look at every player."
Watson, who did not play in 2025 as he rehabbed an Achilles tear from the 2024 season, was set to have an $80.7 million cap hit in 2026, the largest in the NFL. The Browns restructured Watson's contract, freeing up close to $36 million in cap space.
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