Jerry Jeudy got his payday.
The newly acquired Browns wideout inked a three-year contract extension, the team announced Tuesday, and according to multiple outlets, the deal is worth $58 million.
Jeudy’s extension also comes with $41 million guaranteed.
The Browns on Tuesday spoke highly of Jeudy’s skillset and what he’ll bring to the table.
“When we acquired Jerry via trade this spring, it was with the vision that he would become a core member of our offense in 2024 and beyond,” executive vice president of football operations and general manager Andrew Berry said in a statement. “He is a scheme-versatile receiver with high-level ability to separate against man coverage and a diverse number of ways to produce on the perimeter or in the slot.
“We felt that the ability to add a passionate and competitive player with his combination of strengths would be an important component of our offense now and into the future.”
Jeudy, 24, was traded from the Broncos to the Browns for 2024 fifth- and sixth-round draft picks on March 9 after four seasons in Denver.
The 15th overall pick in 2020 out of Alabama flashed some strong moments during his time with the Broncos, racking up a career-best 972 receiving yards in 2022.
But some pundits, including ex-wide receiver Steve Smith, called out Jeudy for his play and didn’t think he was playing up to the level he could.
Before a “Thursday Night Football” game in October where the Broncos played the Chiefs (and Jeudy ended up with 14 receiving yards), Smith ripped into the wideout.
“I’ll repeat it — I’m sorry I said you were a JAG or ‘just a guy’ who’s an average wide receiver they used a first-round pick on that doesn’t do anything,” Smith said. “I hope you show up today in a way that you haven’t shown up in the last couple of years since they drafted you.
“So if you’ve ever got a problem with Agent 89, I’m sorry for saying you’re an average wide receiver that [the Broncos] will eventually move on, and when teams call me and ask [if] they should trade for you, I will say no, don’t trade for Jerry Jeudy because he mentally unable to handle constructive criticism. … He can be a wide receiver — he’s a tier 3.”
Smith later apologized and, more recently, told Cleveland media members in a video on X to stop reaching out to him about Jeudy and start focusing on other things within the Browns’ organization.
Jeudy brings in a career 53.6 yards per game mark and a 67.8 Pro Football Focus grade from 2023.
After the trade, he said he was happy to join a new team in a new city.
“I feel like it’s a fresh start,” he said then. “It’s going to be exciting just to be able to be somewhere new, especially having all the great guys on the team. So, it’s just going to make things a lot easier for me and just better.”
