Brian Baldinger Believes The Browns Have A Star In The Making
(Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)
The best way to understand a defensive lineman’s impact is to watch the tape. Box scores only capture sacks and tackles, but film shows the double teams, the quick first steps and the blockers left grasping at air. That is where the true dominant players separate themselves. One of the NFL’s most respected film analysts went to the tape after Sunday’s game, and he came away raving about Mason Graham.
Brian Baldinger shared his breakdown, “.@Panthers @Browns DT; Mason Graham simply refused to be blocked and played possessed.”
“Let’s watch Mason Graham play possessed football. Backside A-gap. Hello, Chuba Hubbard. Nice to meet you. Tackle for a loss there. Get off the block. Make the tackle, and when he tackles, he wrestles him to the ground. It’s like a two-point takedown. Then, when they needed it the most. Closing time on 3rd and 10. Inside rush, and down goes Bryce Young. He was awesome this game,” Baldinger said.
.@Panthers @Browns DT; Mason Graham simply refused to be blocked and played possessed. #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/1ljXfzbkd0
— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) September 29, 2026
Praise like this means more coming from Baldinger. He spent 11 seasons as an offensive lineman in the NFL, so when he says a defensive tackle refused to be blocked, he knows exactly how hard that is to do.
The tackle for loss he highlighted shows how complete Graham’s game has become. Shooting through the backside A-gap to meet Hubbard in the backfield set the tone for a first half in which Carolina’s lead back managed just 18 yards on 10 carries.
Graham was a state champion wrestler in high school, and that background shows up in how he uses his hands to shed blockers and finish plays once he gets there.
Then there was the pass rush. Graham’s inside move on 3rd-and-10 dropped Young at a critical point in the game, and his other sack came on a 4th-down attempt.
That performance was part of a relentless afternoon for the entire front. The Browns pressured Young on 30 of his 47 dropbacks, and Graham was the one opposing offensive lines could not handle.
He now has 4 sacks through 3 games and has recorded at least 1 in every contest, something no defensive tackle had done to open a season since Akiem Hicks in 2020.
This is exactly what Cleveland hoped for when it took Graham 5th overall in 2025 out of Michigan. With Myles Garrett gone, the Browns needed a new centerpiece up front, and the 23-year-old is rapidly becoming that player.
Interior pressure is one of the hardest things for an offense to solve. Quarterbacks cannot step up into the pocket, protections have to slide inside, and edge rushers like Isaiah McGuire get more favorable matchups as a result.
Graham gets another chance to extend his streak Thursday night against the Pittsburgh Steelers. If he keeps playing like this, he will not need a film breakdown for the rest of the league to notice.