Rising from Class 1A football in Alabama, defensive end Alex Wright has agreed to a three-year, $33 million contract extension with the Cleveland Browns. ‘It just shows the fact that they believe in me,” Wright said. “And I’m not mad at them for believing in me. They put their all into me. They didn’t have to. They didn’t have to draft me. They didn’t have to throw me into the fire. They could have got somebody else my rookie year.“It’s just surreal right now, man. It’s very surreal. Like, right now, I can’t even think straight right now. But at the end of the day, the work is still there. I mean, I’m happy. This is a life-changing moment for me. But at the end of the day, we still got work to do, so just trying to stay as attuned to business as I can. I will take a moment for sure, but at the end of day, we still got work to do.” From Elba High School, Wright went to UAB. In Wright’s third season with the Blazers, Pro Football Focus chose him as its Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year. FOR MORE OF AL. COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE As a third-round rookie in 2022, Wright played half of Cleveland’s defensive snaps, but he did not record a sack. In his second season, Wright recorded five sacks, even though he played 154 fewer snaps in 2023, when former Greenville High School standout Za’Darius Smith joined Myles Garrett as the Browns’ starters at defensive end. A torn triceps limited Wright to four games in 2024. Four away from the best single-season tackle total of his career nine games into the 2025 campaign, Wright has made three sacks for the Cleveland defense, which has yielded the second-fewest yards in the NFL this season. Wright is in the final season of his four-year, $5. 294 million rookie contract and could have become an unrestricted free agent in March. Wright wanted to stay with the Browns. “I feel like this is the best fit for me,” Wright said. “Not only this defense, but playing alongside Myles and playing under coach (Jim) Schwartz. Just seeing how close this defense is, I feel like I couldn’t get that anywhere else. I feel like I grew up here. “Do I want to go? Nah. I feel like I’ve made it. I’m home. This is my home. I feel like just the defense that we have, I felt like I wasn’t going anywhere. I didn’t want to go nowhere. I’m just glad we came to a deal. I’m still in disbelief right now.” More stories on the NFL Did the pope get a former Alabama wide receiver’s jersey? NFL Week 12: Cowboys rookie rising for rematch with Eagles Will Anderson Jr. hopes to lift up veterans, take down Josh Allen The Browns play the Las Vegas Raiders at 3: 05 p. m. CST Sunday at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
https://www.al.com/sports/2025/11/former-uab-star-on-33-million-contract-i-cant-even-think-straight-right-now.html
Former UAB star on $33 million contract: ‘I’m still in disbelief’
