Browns and David Njoku still talking extension: ‘I honestly want to be here for the rest of my career’

CLEVELAND, Ohio — In the span of a year, tight end David Njoku went from wanting to be traded to wanting to finish his career with the Browns.

“I love it here,’’ Njoku said Monday via Zoom in his wrap-up press conference. “I love it here to the core. I honestly want to be here for the rest of my career. My agent and the Browns are still in talks, and we are still negotiating and figuring out what we can do. We will go from there.”

Njoku, playing on his option year at $6.03 million, says his teammates are happy he’s likely in for the long haul. Spotrac.com estimates Njoku’s market value at about four years, $6.9 million a year.

“They obviously hear about it,’’ he said. “They’re excited and hopeful that we do come to an agreement and I end up staying here. Yeah, we are all excited. These are exciting times. It is a lot of blood, sweat and tears that was put into these last few years. I owe it all to God. We just have to keep working. I am just going to go back to the drawing board, figure out what I have to perfect and what I have to do right or what I can do better and get back to work.”

It’s a far cry from this time last year, when Njoku told The Jim Rome Show during Super Bowl week that he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be back in Cleveland for the 2021 season.

“That’s a good question,’’ he told Rome. “I’m not going to answer that right now. I have no comment towards that at this moment. I’m just going to enjoy my family, my friends, and my loves ones. I have couple of projects happening in the near future, so I’m just focused on the right now and I’ll let everything handle itself in the near future.’’

Njoku tells Rome he’s not sure he wants to be back with the Browns in 2021

Njoku, the Browns No. 29 overall pick in 2017, wanted out around the trade deadline last year when he wasn’t being featured in the offense. The Browns signed Austin Hooper and then drafted Harrison Bryant, and Njoku didn’t want to be the third wheel.

“We weren’t really on the same page, the Browns and I,’’ Njoku told Rome of last season. “We were trying to figure things out, trying to make sure both parties were happy and it was very complicated. This game is very political. Obviously if it was just X’s and O’s and straight football, it would be a lot clearer. But there are complications and there are gray areas things happen and it’s tough. And it’s also tough to pick yourself up when things aren’t really going your way.’’

But Njoku put his head down and finished the season strong, which went a long ways towards him coming back this season to play out his option year. In the 22-17 loss to the Chiefs in the AFC Divisional round, he had one of the team’s best offensive performances, catching 4-of-5 targets for 59 yards, with a long reception of 27 yards on the opening drive that led to a field goal.

After the loss, Njoku put his head on the ground and broke down in tears, and was consoled by some teammates. He knew it might be his last game with the Browns, and he left it all on the field.

Instead, the Browns convinced him in the offseason that he was a valued part of the offense and that they wanted him back. Browns GM Andrew Berry helped draft Njoku in 2017, and has always believed in him. When you have the GM in your corner, it’s a great place to start.

Njoku finished third on the team with 36 receptions for 475 yards, and finished first with four TD catches. The receptions were second only to Jarvis Landry (52 for 570, 2 TDs) and fellow tight end Austin Hooper (38 receptions, 345 yards, 3 TDs).

“Looking back and reflecting, obviously, we left a lot on the field, and I want to take personal blame for some of that,’’ Njoku said. “I feel like I could have done more. We all feel like we could’ve done more. We have to just turn to the next chapter and get back to work. Obviously, take a little vacation, take time off to reflect, relax and refocus, and in a couple of weeks, we have to hunker done and start from Phase 1 again.”

Njoku, the best blocking tight end on the team, is capable of twice the production he had this season, and must work hard on his consistency in the offseason. His hands have gotten better over the years, but there’s still room for improvement. With his size and leaping ability, Njoku certainly has the potential for eight TDs in a season instead of the three he’s averaged over his five seasons.

A healthy Baker Mayfield in 2022 should help.

“Yes, I am excited to have everybody healthy and ready to go next season,’’ he said. “Yes.”

Having been around so long, Njoku knows almost more than anyone on the team what a missed opportunity this was.

“100 percent,’’ he said. “What our goals are as a team and individually we have not done yet. More so team wise, it is our dream to bring a championship here in Cleveland. There is no question that we have unfinished business. It is a tough pill to swallow right now because we know how good we were on the roster, and we knew the talent that we had, but we just could not put it all together for whatever reason. Reflect, evaluate ourselves and our team and figure out what we can do to put our best foot forward in the upcoming future.”