Cleveland Browns
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Browns predicted to make surprising pick at 6th overall.
The Cleveland Browns have been active this offseason, overhauling their offensive line, but the team may not be done.
Cleveland has traded for tackle Tytus Howard and signed offensive linemen Elgton Jenkins and Zion Johnson. All three are expected to start for the team. But the team has been widely expected to use one of its two first-round picks on an offensive lineman.
After the first wave of free agency, NFL draft analyst Field Yates of ESPN predicted Cleveland would take offensive tackle Monroe Freeling at sixth overall. But, Yates believes the Browns could take him at sixth overall and have him sit for a season.
“A busy week for the Browns has been led by three major offensive line additions: right tackle Tytus Howard (via trade), guard Zion Johnson and center/guard Elgton Jenkins,” Yates wrote. “All three players signed deals worth eight figures annually. But I think Cleveland will take this O-line investment one step further.
“Freeling has been a favorite of mine throughout the predraft process and has as much upside as any offensive tackle in this class. He could develop into Cleveland’s starting left tackle, as his ability to mirror rushers with his lateral agility and length at 6-foot-7 (34¾-inch arms) stand out. The ideal situation for Freeling would be spending time as a sixth offensive lineman right out of the gate. But most teams picking this high can’t offer that.”
Taking someone to sit for a year at sixth overall would be surprising. But, if Freeling needs some more development, perhaps the Browns are open to it, especially if they can add another veteran offensive tackle in free agency.
Freeling spent three seasons at Georgia.
Browns Have Been Linked to Freeling
Cleveland has been heavily linked to offensive line help, and Freeling has been a popular mock draft pick at sixth overall.
Although there are two other tackles who are expected to be drafted early in the first round, Freeling, being a left tackle, could put him over the top. Cleveland.com’s analyst Tim Bielik reported that the Browns do have interest in him.
The Browns need a left tackle, and Freeling sticks out in a class where the consensus top-two tackles — Spencer Fano and Francis Mauigoa — are not left tackles,” Bielik wrote. “That doesn’t mean they’re not good, but their best pro positions are not at LT. Freeling has as good a chance as any tackle in this class to play left tackle.
“But there’s still some projection on the part of a team making this pick. Freeling has just 16 starts in college and he still has work to do as a run blocker. That said, at 21 years old, Freeling has a lot of room for growth, and it’s easy to trust a lineman coming from Georgia with how Andrew Thomas has developed with the Giants and the potential Amarius Mims is flashing with the Bengals.”
Ultimately, it does appear that the Browns will use the sixth overall pick on a tackle. And, Freeling could very well be who they pick.
Cleveland Overhauled O-Line
All five of the Browns’ offensive linemen were free agents, and the team planned to overhaul the unit.
Cleveland has been active this offseason. Browns general manager Andrew Berry said the team will look to follow what the Chicago Bears did.
“I actually think what Chicago, what (GM) Ryan Poles did last year is a really nice model,” Berry said. “If you think about it, they did a combination of internal development, veteran additions and draft.
“You had Darnell Wright, who he really came into his own at right tackle this past year. They traded for (guard) Joe Thuney. They traded for (guard) Jonah Jackson, they signed (center Drew) Dalman in free agency. And they drafted (tackle) Ozzy Trapilo in the second round. So it’s a nice mixture of youth and experience. And we would look to take a similar approach if the player markets line up for us.”
Cleveland has already done a nice job of overhauling the O-line.