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Free agency is rapidly approaching for the 2026 league year in the NFL, and we’ve been discussing some of the Cleveland Browns’ unrestricted free agents. However, they also have seven exclusive-rights free agents (ERFA) that they have to make a decision on soon.
What are Exclusive-Rights Free Agents?
The ERFA label applies to players who have less than three accrued seasons in the NFL (i.e. 6 games or more on the roster or IR). Under the ERFA rules, the Browns could offer these players a one-year, minimum salary tender for $885,000, $1,005,000, or $1,075,000 based on credited seasons (i.e. 3 games or more on the roster, but not including IR). If the Browns make an offer to an ERFA, no other team would be able to sign the player.
Which Browns are Exclusive-Rights Free Agents?
- WR Malachi Corley
- WR Jamari Thrash
- TE Brenden Bates
- LB Winston Reid
- CB Anthony Kendall
- K Andre Szmyt
- LS Rex Sunahara
In many cases, it’s a no-brainer for a team to just tender all of their ERFAs, since they are essentially minimum salary contracts that are not guaranteed, meaning you can retain them on the roster, but cut them with no consequence if you opt to look for some undrafted free agents instead on your 90-man roster.
In other cases, this can be used as an opportunity to try to reach a contract extension with a young player. For example, the team seemed pretty happy with their new kicker and long snapper last year — Andre Szmyt and Rex Sunahara. Those players know that they’ll be restricted free agents in the future too, so they’re locked in with the Browns for at least a couple of seasons on cheap deals. The Browns could offer them longer-term deals that give them a bump in pay now, but a discount for the team down the road.
Of the Browns’ seven ERFAs, Szmyt and Sunahara are the most obvious players to at least offer a tender to. After that, I’d include two other players worthy of the tender: Malachi Corley and Winston Reid. Even though Cleveland wants to overhaul their receiving corp to a degree, Corley showed some nice shiftiness last year and warrants another look in training camp. Reid was a bit banged up from injuries last year, but has been a promising player and special teams contributor who should also get another look in camp.
When it comes to Thrash, although he had a solid camp last year, the team seemed to waver on him come the regular season. Bates will probably stick around as a backup tight end for now, with David Njoku likely set to depart. Anthony Kendall might be the least likely to be retained. He was signed by the team last offseason, but was waived-injured near the beginning of camp.