The Cincinnati Bengals confirmed they’re critical about defending quarterback Joe Burrow, signing four-time Professional Bowl offensive deal with Orlando Brown Jr. to a four-year deal price $64 million, together with $43.5 million assured, his agent, Michael Portner, informed ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
The Bengals paid a premium to land Brown, the previous Kansas Metropolis Chiefs star who was among the finest accessible offensive tackles in free company. In response to Portner, the deal pays $42.3 million over the primary two years and features a signing bonus of over $31 million, the best ever for an offensive lineman.
The signing bonus is $10 million greater than what offensive linemen Ted Karras, Alex Cappa and La’el Collins obtained mixed after they signed with the Bengals final offseason.
The Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Jets had been amongst different groups that confirmed curiosity in Brown.
Editor’s Picks
2 Associated
He instantly boosts an offensive line that was improved at instances in cross blocking however nonetheless ranked close to the underside of the league. Over the previous two seasons, Burrow has been sacked 92 instances, probably the most within the NFL in that span, and the Bengals’ offensive line has ranked final in cross block win fee, an ESPN metric powered by NFL Subsequent Gen Stats.
Brown additionally will develop into probably the most achieved participant on the roster. He’s one in every of simply 4 offensive linemen within the NFL to be chosen as a Professional Bowler in every of the previous 4 seasons, together with Jason Kelce, Quenton Nelson and Joel Bitonio. Broad receiver Ja’Marr Chase was beforehand the one participant on Cincinnati’s roster with a number of Professional Bowl choices (two).
If Brown continues to play left deal with, which means former first-round choose Jonah Williams will probably have to discover a new place. Williams, who had his fifth-year possibility picked up final season, has been the Bengals’ major starter on the left facet of the road since he was drafted in 2019.
Brown and the Chiefs could not agree on a long-term contract final season, so he performed as their franchise participant, incomes about $16.6 million.
Brown, 26, was acquired by the Chiefs in a 2021 commerce with the Baltimore Ravens. He was the beginning left deal with for each sport besides one in his two seasons with the Chiefs and was a Professional Bowl choice in each campaigns, utilizing his 6-foot-8, 340-pound body to publish a cross block win fee of 91.8% when defending Patrick Mahomes, rating 18th amongst all offensive tackles.
He performed three seasons for the Ravens, with whom Brown was largely a proper deal with. He requested to be traded from Baltimore so he might play left deal with partly as a result of he needed to meet a promise made to his late father, a former NFL offensive deal with.
Brown has appeared in 81 video games (75 begins) in his 5 NFL seasons.
ESPN’s Adam Teicher contributed to this report.
