Should the Cleveland Browns go with an offensive tackle with their first pick in the draft?

The Cleveland Browns have a lot of holes to address in the NFL Draft but is the offensive line one of that much importance?

Should the Cleveland Browns prioritize the offensive line in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft? That’s what our sister site, Dawg Pound Daily is suggesting, as they have the Browns taking Anton Harrison, an offensive tackle out of Oklahoma. The writer at Dawg Pound Daily has him going No. 42 to the Browns, and the reasoning is simple; replace Jedrick Wills.

Here’s the problem with that, while Wills will go down a disappointment, even maybe a bust as a Top 10 pick, he’s still too good to use your first pick in the draft to replace him with, especially when he has two years of controllability let on his contract.

Wills isn’t great but he’s a solid pass blocker, just not at the left tackle position. You could avoid having to draft someone at all if you just switch him and Jack Conklin around. It’s worth trying out, as it’s not like you can’t switch back if it doesn’t work.

Yes, one day, pretty soon, you’re going to have to replace Wills. But when you have so many other holes, why would you do something so foolish and neglect defensive tackle or safety just to replace Wills?

The Browns have far too many worse situations to tend to beyond left tackle. Is Wills going to get a second contract? Probably not. Is Wills so bad he has to be replaced this off-season? No. He’s fine. If he were a fifth-round pick, he’d be a steal. And just to be clear, he and Ethan Pocic, have nearly the same pass-blocking grade according to PFF. You can’t say one has to go because he’s a bad pass-blocker and then in the same breath advocate for Pocic to return.

The Cleveland Browns’ faithful have to accept drafting is not a guarantee

It doesn’t matter if you’re the best GM in the history of the NFL or Andrew Berry; you’re going to miss with most of your yearly draft picks. It’s hard to make it in the NFL. Players don’t often make it to the end of their first contract. It’s very hard to make it in the league and then last.

Saying you need to upgrade at left tackle isn’t wrong. Saying you need to upgrade at left tackle, over upgrading at worse-off positions is. Saying you want to take away from those even worse-off situations, and doing so with an untested, project tackle is even more wrong.

There is no guarantee that Harrison plays better, or even as well as Wills. So why risk it? You can save money in other areas, and you certainly need to focus on improving other positions over left tackle, so why is this even really a conversation?

If you get into rounds six and seven, and you wanna take a flyer at left tackle, go for it. But replacing Wills is 2025’s problem. There’s no reason to make this job even more difficult by cutting someone now, or wasting draft picks on an heir apparent two years before you need to.

Not with the team in the state that it’s in.