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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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The Cleveland Browns have been one of the early surprises this NFL season, entering Sunday's matchup against the Tennessee Titans with a 4-2 record and first place in the AFC North.
Under new head coach Todd Monken, Cleveland already has two key wins over division rivals, beating the Steelers 27-24 in Week 4 and then edging out the Ravens 13-10 last weekend. They also knocked off the Buccaneers 23-19 in Tampa Bay and the Panthers 21-18 at home.
The Browns have shown they can win close games, and they have one of the best defenses in the league, sitting tied for second in sacks (19) and fifth in points allowed (20.3 per game). Now, they've just locked up one of their top defensive players to a big extension.
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Sunday morning, NFL insiders Ian Rapoport and Adam Schefter reported that the Browns and star defensive tackle Maliek Collins have agreed to a two-year contract extension worth $30 million, including $23 million in guaranteed money. The deal comes just hours before Cleveland faces Tennessee, with Collins in the final season of his previous two-year $20 million contract with the Browns. This new deal keeps Collins in Cleveland through the 2028 season.
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Collins is a 31-year-old tackle who entered the league as the Cowboys' third-round pick in 2016 after three years at Nebraska. He spent four seasons in Dallas before signing with the Raiders on a one-year deal. He then spent three seasons in Houston before getting traded to San Francisco and then signing with the Browns in March 2025, where he appears to have finally found a home.
After joining Cleveland, Collins recorded a career-high 6.5 sacks in 12 games before suffering a season-ending quad injury. He returned for the start of the 2026 season and has made an immediate impact, recording 16 tackles, five tackles for loss, eight quarterback hits, and 3.5 sacks through six games. He's now recorded one sack in each of the last three games and has been one of the Browns' top pass rushers this season.
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Collins is producing at a high level again, helping drive one of the NFL's best defenses and providing veteran leadership to younger players on the roster. With his previous deal expiring after this season, Cleveland chose to lock up a key piece of their defense now rather than risk potentially losing him in free agency.
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