NFL Network: Browns, CB Denzel Ward agree to two-year, $62.2 million extension

Denzel Ward is staying home.

The Cleveland Browns agreed to a two-year, $62.2 million extension with the five-time Pro Bowler, making Ward the highest-paid defensive back in NFL history for the second time in his career, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday.

The No. 4 overall pick of the 2018 draft out of Ohio State, Ward has established himself as a premier cover cornerback, blanketing top talents throughout the NFL in a defense that has proven to be Cleveland's strength in recent years. With eight NFL seasons under his belt and 104 passes defensed and 18 interceptions on his résumé, Ward's reputation has been cemented, as evidenced by his three consecutive Pro Bowl selections since 2023.

When Cleveland traded Myles Garrett to the Los Angeles Rams earlier this offseason, some wondered whether it was the start of a fire sale that would include Ward. Browns leadership quickly denied such speculation and backed its words with dollars Tuesday, handing Ward his second extension since April 2022.

At 29 years old, it's possible this is Ward's last major extension. The new deal tacks on two years to a contract that had two years remaining (including 2026) while vaulting Ward up the salary charts and slightly past Rams corner Trent McDuffie, whose own four-year, $124 million extension pays him an annual average of $31 million.

Though it's far from certain he'll retire as a Brown, Ward will spend the majority of his career in Cleveland, a city less than 25 miles away from his hometown of Macedonia, Ohio.