DawgTalkers.net Forums The Archives 2020 NFL Season 2020 NFL Draft With the 10th pick in the draft the Browns select...

Never been to Nobel. Haven't heard of it actually. I'll have to look it up the next time down to the Gulf. Spent more than a few hours at the Irish Social.

Fixer Upper: Patching the Browns OT holes.

https://waitingfornextyear.com/2020/01/cleveland-browns-nfl-draft-free-agency-offensive-tackle-2020/

Sashi Brown tore the house down to rebuild the foundation. John Dorsey tried a quick flip, but he hired the wrong contractors and put too much focus on having a luxurious pool. The Cleveland Browns believe they have a solid structure in an ideal location with loads of potential, but there are definitely some areas within the team that requires being patched or completely re-worked as Kevin Stefanski takes over the coaching side of the organization. One of those areas is at offensive tackle where replacing both Greg Robinson and Chris Hubbard should be considered necessary components facilitating offensive improvements for the 2020 season.

Better play by the tackles will help quarterback Baker Mayfield be able to make more plays from the pocket, help running back Nick Chubb have more lanes to run, and also will help alleviate issues at right guard should the Browns not have enough assets to fix three positions on the offensive line.

The issue is further compounded by the likelihood Stefanski will institute more zone-blocking components in the offense, which is the scheme employed by the San Francisco 49ers, Green Bay Packers, and Tennessee Titans in last weekend’s conference championship games. Such a scheme puts more emphasis on intelligence,1 intuitiveness,2 quickness,3 and fleetness of foot4 by the offensive line, while de-emphasizing strength and length to a degree.

The vast difference in styles and usage is likely one of the reasons offensive line coach James Campen was not retained despite being a well-respected coach. Obtaining a coach who has taught and understands the scheme is as important as having lineman such as Joel Bitonio and J.C. Tretter who fit the needed elements across the line.

The good news is the 2020 offseason happens to have a plethora of available tackles both in free agency and the upcoming NFL draft. If the Browns are dedicated, then they could find options superior to what they currently employ.

Here are the options and how they could be used to fix the biggest issue holding back the offense.

Free agency
Jack Conklin, RT, Titans
Cornelius Lucas, LT, Bears
Matt Feiler, RT, Steelers (RFA)
Jason Peters, LT, Eagles
Bryan Bulaga, RT, Packers
Anthony Castonzo, LT, Colts
Halapoulivaati Vaitai, RT, Eagles
Zach Banner, OT, Steelers (RFA)
Conklin and Castonzo had outstanding years, but it is unlikely either reach free agency. If one does, then the Browns should push hard to sign them. There are other decent options for starters– though with bigger questions. Steeler offensive linemen tend to not play as well outside of Pittsburgh as they get coached well in their scheme– for reference, see Hubbard’s time with the Browns. Lucas played well down the stretch upon being thrust into the starting lineup, but he has had limited experience. Perhaps the best option for the Browns in free agency would be to sign 38 year old Jason Peters as a short-term patch or to lure Bryan Bulaga from Green Bay.

NFL Draft
Mekhi Becton, OT, Louisville
Jedrick Wills, OT, Alabama
Andrew Thomas, OT, Georgia
Tristan Wirfs, OT, Iowa
Lucas Niang, OT, TCU
Austin Jackson, OT, USC
Others to consider: Trey Adams (Washington), Prince Tega Wanogho (Auburn), Josh Jones (Houston), Isaiah Wilson (Georgia)
There are not many scenarios where the Browns should not select an offensive tackle with the No. 10 overall pick, but the franchise should feel comfortable letting the draft play out to their slot rather than any need to trade up. There are four Tier-1 offensive tackles in this draft worthy of being drafted from the Browns’ post, and many others who would be good backup offensive linemen in later rounds.

Mekhi Becton: The other three OT in the Tier-1 group are 6-foot-5 and 320 pounds. Becton is a monster at 6-foot-7 and 360 pounds. Such girth projects a lineman that would have less functional athleticism, quickness, and agility. However, Becton is equal or better in these areas plus adding advantages in strength and stoutness. A former basketball player, Becton moves with fluidity, finds unblocked defenders in space with ease, and finishes his blocks with ferocity. Despite not many prospect lists having him as a first-round pick during the season, my expectation is that he “rises” up boards as more of the true analysts watch his tape. Unless red flags arise, he is at the top of my wish list for the Browns.

Jedrick Wills: Wills played on the right side at Alabama but would provide value even if he stays there in the NFL. He appears the strongest of these candidates on film with an easy strength to stop incoming rushers. With outstanding balance and form, Wills projects as a fit with nearly any style offense at the next level. The Tide had him moving forward more than laterally, so there could be some concern about his overall agility if he does not test well. The clean technique and film though make him have perhaps the highest floor of any tackle prospect this year.

Andrew Thomas: Thomas was my No. 1 OT prospect before the Browns switched to a more zone-heavy scheme. He has a great base and powerful hands. When tasked with the basic left tackle duties, he is stout and quick. However, his weakness– relative to the others above him here– is his lateral movement and abilities in open space. Those become more prominent deficiencies in the expected scheme. It is a testament to the strength of this tackle class that the ‘fit’ drops such a strong prospect.

Tristan Wirfs: Like Wills, Wirfs played on the right side. He has a great first step and punches to initiate contact with his opposition and his ability to move laterally gives him benefits to exploit. The worry with Wirfs is a lack of agility that has caused him some consternation when needing to deal with speed rushers, which holds him below the other prospects listed here.

Summary
The Cleveland Browns have the fancy new pool with the outdoor barbeque. They have a solid foundation and are in a prime location. But, none of that matters if the drywall is falling off the studs throughout the house. It is time for the franchise to replace the offensive tackles and go into the 2020 season ready to showcase what they’ve built.

Being stuck in Mobile gives me the Memphis blues.

j/c...

ChadP71 @BrownsAccess
@chadp71
#Browns
Many believe the Browns should let GRob leave and draft a LT then go with it. Using PFF data I tracked every tackle drafted in the 1st RD from 2014 to 2019 to show how difficult to hit on a OT is. Sack+Hits+Hurries=Pressures
Robinson allowed 26 for the 19 season

**Click link for chart**

https://twitter.com/chadp71/status/1219796618238668800

If we can land a legit LT in FA (this is on top of drafting one at 10), then I'd feel a little better about letting GRob walk. Depends on how he would fit into our new blocking scheme, I guess.

As far as I can tell, we only have 2 starters on the line that are set. We have to find 3 starters, and I think best case scenario is someone currently on the roster bubbles up over the offseason and fills the RG spot (put another way, we have to find 2 starter-caliber tackles in the offseason).

I'd be okay with making a play for Jason Peters for 2 years, moving down to 15, getting another 2nd round pick and picking the best safety at 15 we can get then draft Austin Jackson at the 2nd round pick and put him at RT.. move him to LT in 2 years and ditch Peters

I would trade it for 5, 18, 26 and a next years 1. Then use ammo to trade to 2 and take chase young

What the above chart is saying is that rookie tackles, that are drafted in the first round, are usually no better than Greg Robinson was last year (and we aren't even going to get the best one).

https://nfldraft.theringer.com/

The above draft ranking page is the coolest setup I've ever seen.

1. Wirfs
2. Simmons
3. Trade Down

That's my board for the tenth pick. It won't change.

That's because most college tackles aren't that great technique-wise.

This year there are several good ones.

Stats can be misleading.

And we just signed a great OL coach, one of the best in the biz to teach them.

It can also imply from the Twitter post that replacing Hubbard is the bigger priority.

That's the point. All of the guys on the chart were "supposed to be great ones" they are first round picks.

I am down for taking Wirfs because he is a perfect fit but if he's not there I'm not risking the tenth pick on a maybe.

Take care of the tackle position in free agency and go into the draft not needing to draft a tackle.

That should be doable for RT, but it will be tough at LT unless we do something like trade for Trent for a short-term rental while we groom a drafted kid.

Like Delpit, Wirfs is a guy I went into the film expecting to like him a lot more than I did.

Exactly. FA is where you sign for need. The draft is where you select best players.

Only teams with 10 wins or more can get away with drafting for need at the top of the draft.

Doing things that way can lead to things like Greg Robinson and Chris Hubbard being your starting tackles.

It looks like the areas we have a lot of room for improvement (both OTs) align with where highly talented players are coming out in the draft.

I'm assuming Dorsey looking ahead to this year and the depth of tackles that would be available in the draft is the reason he signed Greg Robinson to a one year deal last year.

Despite what people say, a team with 53 Nick Chubbs wouldn't win many games.

You don't just pick the best players. You have to pick the best players for your team.


Lamm and Hubbard are still under contract for 2020, so we don't "need" OTs to the point we have to break the bank for one in Free Agency. It should probably be called something else which includes the words expensive or overpriced rather than "free" agency.

I understand you aren't going to keep drafting the same position.

We do have several areas of need. OT is one of them. Needs and BPA just might match close enough this year. If teams go on a run on tackle and say 4 get drafted in the 1st 9 players, it might be better to look at some of the other players, like a Derrick Brown.

I might look at Kinlaw instead.

It also depends on which 4 OTs.

If there is a run on tackles, you might have to take one with upside a bit earlier than you'd like in order to ensure you aren't left with none.

It depends a lot on what we think other teams will do.

We went into the season with Robinson and Hubbard at tackle not because the tackle position was addressed in free agency, but because it was ignored.

Other than Nate Soldier, who would you have suggested?

Solder was a free agent the previous off-season.

Basically anyone would have outperformed Robinson and Hubbard. Hubbard seemed fine at the time because he was fine in 2018. I can't really fault the front office for that one. Robinson is egregious. There were mountains of evidence showing that Robinson was a bad player and we kept him because he played well in a few games. Maybe the thought was Desmond Harrison would step up (oof)?

It doesn't matter at this point. There are a ton of good tackles and guards available in free agency this year and several good tackles available in the draft. Let's hope we improve those spots.

I believe when one looks at the last half of the 2018 season it would be easy to see why one might come to the conclusion we would be "okay" going into 2019 with both Hubbard and Robinson.

I don't see how addressing the positions with expensive half measures in the FA market whom would be terribly overpaid really addresses either position for the long haul. A person with foresight could see that the draft opportunities this off season would be far more conducive to addressing the OT positions.

Buying in a market where the supply is low and the demand is high is not the way to do business.

j/c...

...to me, they look like free agents we overpaid to fill needs. Then we didn't draft linemen because we had them in place and people with similar, perhaps slightly higher, grades at other positions got drafted.

They also were getting the job done at the end of the previous year. I bet we felt we could've pushed addressing those spots another offseason.

Actually Robinson's salary ranked 19th in the league for LT's and that was in a contract signed just last year. Many LT's were on older contracts whose salaries would have commanded much more than Robinson's had they have gotten a new contract last year. Robinson was signed on the cheap for one year deal as he should have been.

You're right, Robinson's contract wasn't bad. I'd be fine with a similar contract.

I'd still like to take a good young OT (preferably 2) early in this draft.

I'd rather not make Conklin (temporarily) the highest paid OT in the league.

I doubt Castonzo would take a Greg Robinson deal.

Maybe DJ Humphries, but I doubt it. He'll probably want something multi-year.

I'm certainly all for addressing the OT positions in the draft. I'm just not sure at this time we can address both in a single draft. I'm hoping we can certainly address the LT position in round 1. I'm just thinking that by round 2, and other needs still needing filled, they may plan to go more with BPA in position of need rather than trying to double up on the OT position.

The key here is that the FA signing period comes before the drat. By that time we will see how this new staff plans to work it.

I'm betting we can get a RT in free agency, leaving us to be able to take a LT in the Draft, and probably double-down with a swing tackle in the 3rd or 4th round as a developmental kid.


The more I think about it, the more I now realize that Trent Williams is NOT an option unless he gets released, and then I would only give him a two year contract. I would NOT give up anything more than a 3rd round pick in a trade for him, and it would have to be contingent upon him agreeing to a new deal that extends him to two years.

With the Skins possibly taking a tackle in the draft, he very well may be available the day after the Draft.

May or may not be comforting thought, but we have to replace 3 starters on the line anyway, due to scheme change. Was going to happen with Stefanski coming in, it seems. I would hope that RG will be filled organically with someone that we currently have on the roster taking the position. We should at least be able to successfully address 1 of the tackle spots.

Maybe Forbes will be able top fill a spot. Who knows?

Most drafts probably couldn't fix both OTs. This one looks like a different animal.

I agree, FA should give us some clues.

See, going down this path is where I can start to get on board with trading away one of our blue-chip talents for a high draft pick. If there's a top-level guy that we don't think we can use in our new system(s), see what you can get for him in an upcoming tackle-heavy draft (Vernon, OBJ, Njoku, etc).

There really aren't any names that fit that, because - theoretically - we finally have coaches that will tailor things to the talent we have.

Also, someone like OBJ works in ANY system.

Well you know the thought process around here a lot of times. Two in the bush is worth more than a bird in the hand.

I wouldn't be surprised if the FO decided that we have a glut of receiving options and need more ammo to address deficiencies at OT, TE, FB right now instead of over several offseasons.

That and lots of people are hoping we trade OBJ - for no reason at all.