Terrelle Pryor

Terrelle Pryor won't receive the franchise tag from the Browns, which would pay him more than $15 million in 2017.

(John Kuntz, cleveland.com)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Browns still have no plans to franchise receiver Terrelle Pryor, a league source told cleveland.com.

The deadline to do so is Wednesday at 4 p.m.

The franchise number for wide receivers will be upwards of $15 million for 2017.

The Browns hope to sign Pryor to a long-term deal before he hits the open market March 9.

Browns Executive Vice President Sashi Brown said after the season that he didn't want to use the franchise tag on Pryor or linebacker Jamie Collins, and that hasn't changed, the source said. They signed Collins to a $50 million extension, and have every intention of getting Pryor wrapped up, too.

Plenty of free agency business will take place in Indianapolis this week during the NFL Combine, and the Browns could meet with Pryor's representatives, Drew and Jason Rosenhaus, there. A league source recently told cleveland.com that "strong discussions will take place soon.''

The Rosenhauses likely want to set Pryor's market price before completing a deal with the Browns. Teams can begin exchanging numbers with agents on March 7 in the "legal tampering period'' before free agency officially opens March 9. A deal can't be executed until March 9.

During that two-day window, Pryor -- who eclipsed 1,000 yards in the season finale against Pittsburgh -- will know what he can get on the open market, and then his agents can take that number to the Browns to match or exceed.

Elite receivers make anywhere from about $8 million more than $15 million a year, with Pittsburgh's Antonio Browns and Cincinnati's A.J. Green topping the list.

Brown, who's also represented by Drew Rosenhaus, signed a five-year extension on Monday worth $72.7 million, an average of more than $15 million a year, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Now that Brown is done, Rosenhaus will likely focus more attention on Pryor's negotiation.

Earlier this month, Pryor told cleveland.com that he made it clear to his agents how much he wants to remain in Cleveland, the only team to give him a chance when he converted from quarterback.

"I know this is an important month,'' Pryor, one of the top receivers due to become free, told cleveland.com last week. "But I do love being with the Browns, and like I said before, this thing isn't about joining a different team because a different team's good.

"That's not what it's about. I love the building process here. I started out in my career never coming in the front door. I've always got to go in the back, the hard way, the longer way."

Like his teammate Joe Thomas, Pryor wants to be part of the turnaround under Hue Jackson, who helped draft him in 2011 when he was head coach of the Raiders.

"I have no problem with, just because we were 1-15 or whatever this year, coming back,'' Pryor said. "I don't mind starting fresh next year and continuing to grow, because I think it's more exciting when you're on the bottom. I'm always citing starting from the bottom and getting to the top, and I think it's a greater feeling and it would be great to give Cleveland what they're looking for.''

The Browns have every intention of wrapping up Pryor, especially considering it's a weak free-agent market for receivers.