Alex Mack brought stability to the Cleveland Browns in an unstable time

Former Cleveland Browns’ center Alex Mack retires and clears a path to the Hall of Fame.

Alex Mack has been a long-time fixture in the NFL, having been drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 2009. During his years in the league, he played for Cleveland, Atlanta, and San Francisco, and in his quest to open up paths for runners to get to the next level, he ended up opening up a path for him to get straight to Canton.

Mack is a future Hall of Famer and should be considered a legend in Cleveland. Even if he wanted out so badly he tried to go to Jacksonville instead.

Mack is someone that often gets overlooked, mostly due to Joe Thomas’ run of being the best tackle in the history of football. Yet, Mack, like Thomas, brought stability to an offensive line that long-needed it and even though the Browns saw limited success during his time there, he did prove what he was capable of in Atlanta and San Francisco.

He went to two NFC Championship games as a member of the Falcons and 49ers and was part of the Falcons team that made the Super bowl in 2017. His ability to stabilize a line isn’t all he was known for, he was also a seven-time Pro Bowler and a three-time member of the All-Pro team.

Mack is someone that has earned his eventual gold jacket in Canton.

Alex Mack’s retirement may open up a path for a former Browns player to land in San Francisco

With Alex Macks’ retirement in San Francisco, the door may be open for a former Cleveland Browns player to replace him. That player, is, of course, JC Tretter. There are a lot of teams that need a Top 5 center like Tretter (*cough cough Cleveland cough cough*), and the 49ers are now one of them.

Mack will be hard to replace, but many critics still rate Tretter either in the Top 5 of Top 3 at his position still, despite being 31-years-old. Tretter would fit well in San Francisco’s offense, and if the team really feel the need to replace Mack with the best possible option, they couldn’t go wrong with Tretter.