Pro Bowl center Alex Mackvoided his contract with the Browns on Wednesday, but his camp isn't counting out a return to Cleveland.
"We view Alex's decision to void as procedural,"Â his agent, Tim Younger, told The Plain Dealer. "It was built into his contract to afford him maximum flexibility. For the first time in his career, he will be experiencing true free agency. Although we anticipate interest from multiple teams, he was very impressed with Hue Jackson and returning to the Browns certainly remains on the table."
Ranking 19th on Around The NFL's list of the top 99 free agents, Mack's voided deal with the Browns offered $8 million per season over the next three years. He's set to earn to more on the open market, but Browns VP of football operations Sashi Brown said at the NFL Scouting Combine that Cleveland will work to re-sign their reliable pivot.
The Plain Dealer's Mary Kay Cabot reported that Mack "likes Browns coach Hue Jackson, he loves his fellow offensive linemen and his girlfriend is from here." What Mack can't be a fan of, though, is playing with countless quarterbacks on a team that has gone 33-79 since he arrived as a first-round draft pick in 2009.
All that aside, Mack is set to become the highest-paid center in the NFL. Unless the Browns are willing to outpay the competition, he's is a strong bet to land elsewhere in 2016.
