Browns roster: Plan at left tackle

The Cleveland Browns had plenty of issues along the offensive line after last year. This group was ranked #31 at season’s end.

To be fair, the starting lineup for Week 1 was a 360 from the offensive line starters going into the final contest of the schedule.

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Gone from the lineup were RT Jack Conklin, RG Wyatt Teller, C Ethan Pocic, and LT Dawand Jones. All that was remaining was LG Joel Bitonio. Four out of five were missing. The Week 1 group was ranked #3 in the league just a few years ago, except OT Jed Wills was starting at LT instead of Jones.

What happened to this group? Can it be the fault of losing O-Line coach Bill Callahan? Could it be that the depth wasn’t what the coaching staff believed would be adequate, as attrition seeps in going down the stretch? Could it be a lack of elite care in the strength and conditioning department?

In the end, backups and practice squad guys joined Bitonio in a makeshift situation. In all, Cleveland utilized seven different offensive line combinations. And after the final gun of the last game, the list of free agents from the 2025 roster was a who’s who of Browns offensive linemen: Teller, Conklin, Pocic, Bitonio, Cam Robinson, Teven Jenkins, and Cornelius Lucas. Plus, practice squad guys such as C Justin Osbourne and OGs Jack Conley, Darrian Dalcourt, and Wesley French.

Browns GM Andrew Berry had no choice but to address the offensive line first and foremost in this year’s free agency period.

The new lineup

Berry became his quest to transform Cleveland’s offensive line. He began in January by signing reserve/future contracts with OG Conley and OT Tyre Phillips. Next, he terminated the contracts of Osbourne and Lucas.

Already under contract in this room are LT Jeremiah Byers, OG Zak Zinter, RT KT Leveston, and centers Kingsley Eguakun, Luke Wypler, and Kendrick Green, plus now Conley and Phillips.

He then worked up a trade with the Houston Texans for OT Tytus Howard. Then Jenkins was re-signed, followed by inking Los Angeles Chargers’ OG Zion Johnson and C/OG/OT Elgton Jenkins from the Green Bay Packers.

The new depth chart? RT Tytus Howard, RG Teven Jenkins, C Elgton Jenkins, LG Zion Johnson, and LT Dawand Jones.

Of course, that is before training camp begins. Anything can change once the pads go on, and obviously, there is a new head coach in town along with new assistants. But if the Browns had a game tomorrow, at least there is structure with the O-Line arrangement.

Keep in mind, Bitonio is expected to retire, but so far, no word from his camp on what his future plans are. Cleveland would throw open their arms widely if he decided to play another season, and then his spot would be ready for him. The coaching staff would love nothing better than to have to rearrange the line if Bits came back.

But for now, the coaching staff has to deal with what’s in-house.

The draft toss-up

The NFL draft is April 23-25. Cleveland owns the #6 pick in Round 1, the #39 spot in Round 2, and the #70 selection in the third round. There are good offensive linemen in all rounds, and many a great offensive lineman came from the Day 2 catalog. Teller himself was a fifth-rounder. OT Doug Dieken and OG Jim Ray Smith in Round 6. So was C Fred Hoaglin. OT Paul Farren was taken in Round 12. OT Cody Risien in Round 7.

It is a huge probability that Berry will take at least one offensive lineman in this year’s draft, and most likely two.

Zinter was selected in the third round of the 2024 draft as quality depth that could develop into the right guard spot once Teller moved on. Well, that time has come, and Zinter isn’t anywhere ready to take on a backup role, much less being the starter. The same for Wypler. He was taken as the next replacement at the center position, and has played well at times in spot duty. But certainly not ready for Primetime.

So instead of breeding their own, Berry now had to resort to signing a slew of seasoned veterans to come in and start.

The draft will bring in another new guy. Or two.

The hope is that OT Francis Mauigoa of Miami will slip down to the sixth spot. Doubtful, but in past drafts, weird things come out of nowhere, and teams get antsy for guys and/or certain positions and overreach, which makes the draft drop.

OT Spencer Fano from Utah is another possibility, as is Georgia OT Monroe Freeling. Later in the first round at #24, Cleveland might have their choice of OT Kadyn Proctor of Alabama, OT Caleb Lomu from Utah, Clemson OT Blake Miller, or OG Vega Ioane from Penn State.

For the second round, look for OT Max Iheanachor of Arizona State, OG Emmanuel Pregnon from Oregon, Texas A&M OG Chase Bisontis, and Iowa OG Gennings Dunker.

The choices for Round 3 include OG Connor Lew of Auburn, OT Caleb Tierman from Northwestern, Georgia Tech OG Keylan Rutledge, and C/OG Sam Hecht of Kansas State.

All of these players are premium athletes. Each one will come in on Day 1 and compete for a starting role, no matter what the depth chart states.

There is a glitch along the offensive line, though: OT Dawand Jones. True, he is the assumed starter at left tackle. And in games, even when he was a rookie, he has played at right tackle as well. So, he is versatile at both tackle spots.

However, can the coaching staff trust him? Do they believe he will survive a full season of games?

Jones was a fourth-round pick out of Ohio State back in 2023. He had a great training camp and was listed as the backup for both tackle spots. In Week 2, Conklin went down with a season-ending injury, and instead of the more experienced reserve tackles, Jones was inserted at right tackle. He then started nine of the next 11 games before a knee injury placed him on IR.

The following year, it was a fractured ankle that put him back on IR for the remainder of the schedule. Last season, he started at LT, but in Week 3, another knee injury ended his season.

For those scoring at home, that’s three years on the roster, with three times on season-ending IR. Going into 2026, he will be ready for training camp and is penciled in at LT.

Some offensive linemen get comfortable at one position, and when asked to play another, they struggle. Jones played right tackle at Ohio State, but he essentially can play either side.

Let’s review which side the offensive tackles on the Browns’ radar played in college:

Francis Mauigoa (6’-6”, 335 pounds) – Miami

2025: 13 games at RT; 2024: 13 games at RT; 2023: 13 games at RT

Spencer Fano (6’-5”, 311 pounds) – Utah

2025: 12 games at RT; 2024: 12 games at RT; 2023: 13 games at LT

Monroe Freeling (6’-7”, 315 pounds) – Georgia

2025: 13 games at LT; 2024: 5 games at LT; 2023: 8 games at LT

Kadyn Proctor (6’-7”, 360 pounds) – Alabama

2025: 13 games at LT; 2024: 10 games at LT; 2023: 13 games at LT

Caleb Lomu (6’-6”, 308 pounds) – Utah

2025: 12 games at LT; 2024: 12 games at LT; 2023: 3 games at LT

Blake Miller (6’-6”, 315 pounds) – Clemson

2025: 13 games at RT; 2024: 14 games at RT; 2023: 13 games at RT; 2022: 14 games at RT

Max Iheanachor (6’-6”, 330 pounds) – Arizona State

2025: 14 games at RT; 2024: 14 games at RT; 2023: 5 games at RT

Caleb Tierman (6’7”, 325 pounds) – Northwestern

2025: 13 games at LT; 2024: 12 games at LT; 2023: 13 games at LT; 2022: 5 games at RT

Right versus left side

In interviews with former offensive linemen, the question was asked what the difference is between the right and left sides. All of them stated it is where you set your back foot, and the outside hand is the first strike. They acted like it was no issue playing either side.

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Excerpt from the Fike interview:

DBN: What are the differences in playing guard and tackle, and the differences in playing the right side of the offensive line versus the left side?

Fike: Right side, you are in a right-handed stance, and the left side, you are in a left-handed stance. And yes, you can jump from one side to the other. At Florida, we flip-flopped our lines my junior and senior so that we could play both left and right. It worked out for me, and I don’t recall it ever being an issue.

Right now, the Detroit Lions are questioning whether to move their star left tackle Penei Sewell over to the rightside like it’s no big deal.

That being said, after Berry was hired as the new GM of the Browns in 2020, he signed RT Jack Conklin from the Tennessee Titans on the first day of free agency. Then, when April’s NFL draft rolled along, he took RT Jedrick Wills with the 10th overall selection in the 2020 draft.

Wills had played 41 games at right tackle in his three seasons with the University of Alabama. In training camp, Wills was switched to left tackle. Conklin had played 57 games at right tackle for the Titans since coming to the NFL, but in college, he had 35 starts at left tackle and three at right tackle.

It was wondered out loud why Conklin didn’t move over to left tackle instead of Wills. Of course, back then, Bill Callahan was the offensive line coach, and so the question was never said for more than a whisper. Coach C would know.

But for his entire career, Wills looked like he was out of sorts. He never did play up to his #10 drafted status and eventually wasn’t re-signed and now is out of football.

Some folks believe in the right side vs. left side myth. They believe that a guy will be out of place going to the other side. But the truth is, a lot of players will play multiple positions, and on both sides of the center.

What happens if Berry takes a true left tackle in the draft? Freeling, Lomu, and Proctor all fall into that category. One would assume being taken in the first round would guarantee a starting role come Week 1.

What happens to Jones? Does he shift to the right tackle job? If so, then what happens to Howard, who has played the past two seasons at RT for the Texans? Does Jones suddenly become a swing tackle, knowing that his being a starter is just a snap away from yet another lost season due to another injury?

Howard has some right guard experience. This would allow Teven Jenkins to resort to a backup for several of those spots, just like last season.

Berry should draft two offensive linemen this year – one to start, with the other groomed for the future. Bringing in two new guys will certainly create some heated competition for multiple spots along the line this year, but it will be a great problem to have for new O-Line coach Sanders Davis and his assistant coach Bobby Johnson.

Now, all the Browns need is for Bitonio to show up in great shape and want to play one more season.

Browns roster: Plan at left tackle

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