Mohamoud Diabate #43 of the Cleveland Browns
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Mohamoud Diabate #43 of the Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns opened the official NFL free agency period with no surprises, as a clear focus on rebuilding the offensive line and providing better protection for whomever is the next quarterback of the team was the obvious goal. And nothing is set in stone until this group begins working together–and, indeed, until they get a clearly defined left tackle–but at first blush, it’s hard to look at the group and say it has not been upgraded.
Even with the loss of left guard Joel Bitonio, whose contract deadline came and went without an announcement, the fact is, this is a better group here just ahead of the spring of 2026 than it was throughout 2025, when Pro Football Focus ranked the Browns as featuring the second-worst offensive line in the NFL.
But the Browns will have a new group, and along the way, they also had to lop off some contributors from the end of the roster. They did just that, announcing that they were non-tendering four players.
As ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi wrote on Twitter/X: ” The Browns did not apply a tender to restricted free agents Mohamoud Diabate, Sam Kamara, Sam Webb and Blake Whiteheart. They are all unrestricted free agents now.”
Browns Still Need Help on the Roster
There is still a lot more work to be done on the Browns roster, no question. The team has plenty holes that need to be filled, even when you remove the ever-evolving search for a franchise quarterback. Speculation has held–and has been borne out here in early free agency–that the Browns will feature Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson at the top of their 2026 QB competition, and will bring in someone else to compete for the job.
A trade for Colts outcast Anthony Richardson is still in line. Free agents like Malik Willis, Geno Smith, Tua Tagovailoa and, if rumors of a Vikings landing spot are true, Kyler Murray, won’t be on the board for the Browns.
But the Browns very badly need a top-tier wide receiver to join their underwhelming group of pass-catchers. Even worse, they need a left tackle, a hole they’re almost certain to fill in next month’s draft.
Offensive Line Is Better
Back to the offensive line, then. The Browns will have picks No. 6 and 24 in the draft, and have probably done enough work on the starting group to only need to use one of those picks for a lineman. They also have the 39th overall pick, their top pick in the second round, and that could be used to draft a developmental lineman who could add depth.
A cynic would point out that it is a low bar to clear for the Browns to get better up front, and they’re not all that much better than last year. To an extent, that’s true. Every player the Browns added is a bruised apple–the Titans were ready to give away right tackle Tytus Howard before the Browns trade, Packers‘ veteran Elgton Jenkins was injured last year and is 30 and Zion Johnson was only mediocre (No. 50 out of 79 on PFF’s guard rankings) in 2025.
But the Browns had a clear need, and even with limited resourced, they filled the need. Now, they’ve just got to fill the rest.