5 Cleveland Browns whose stock are down after staving off Vikings

2. Cleveland Browns RT Jack Conklin

The Cleveland Browns offensive line is still strong, but early on, the group doesn’t seem to be as good as it was a season ago, when it was one of the big strengths of the team.

One of the players piecing together inconsistency is right tackle Jack Conklin, who was Andrew Berry’s first spashy first free-agent signing heading into the 2020 season.

Conklin was as dependable as you get during his first season, but he’s battling a knee injury and the caution light is definitely going off.

He surrendered three pressures against the Vikings, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), while posting an overall game score of 68.0. That’s considered backup level (60.0-69).

Alas, this comes after a week when Conklin led all Browns’ offensive linemen with a game grade of 89.1.

He was also very good in the opener against the Chiefs (87.2), but awful against the Texans. He took a grade of 64.5 in that one, allowing a sack.

Through four games, he’s played like a backup-level player, at least in the eyes of Pro Football Focus.

It’s important to keep in mind that Mayfield’s best season came in 2020, when his tackles were reliable, meaning Conklin and Jedrick Wills fended off rushers. This year, it’s different, with Wills battling an ankle injury and Conklin not playing like his normal self.