Down Two Centers, Browns Have Options
Over the course of three days, the Cleveland Browns have lost a pair of centers for the season to torn knee ligaments, but the team does not need to panic because they have options both on the roster as well as in free agency.
Coming into training camp, the Browns had Nick Harris ready to be the heir to J.C. Tretter's throne at the pivot. They signed Ethan Pocic to be his backup and drafted Dawson Deaton in the seventh-round of the 2022 NFL Draft, then signed undrafted free agent Brock Huffman after the draft. Of the four, only Pocic and Huffman remain.
Deaton's path to the active roster was anything but guaranteed. The final pick of Andrew Berry's third draft class and the second in the seventh round within an underwhelming class, Deaton had some ability, but might need time to be NFL ready. Short of surprising the organization, he may have been a player they were anticipating trying to get to their practice squad.
It's also worth noting that Deaton was listed at guard. The team hoped he could be a versatile interior option, but only the other three were actually listed at center. Likewise, both Michael Dunn and Hjalte Froholdt have experience at center. In fact, Froholdt has already taken reps at center for the Browns and was an effective blocker in the preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Offensive linemen who are all but certain to make the active roster include Jedrick Wills, Joel Bitonio, Wyatt Teller, Jack Conklin, James Hudson, Chris Hubbard and Ethan Pocic. That leaves two spots. If they intend to keep nine offensive linemen on the active roster, that leaves two spots available. One for Harris and then one that was always going to be up for grabs.
Given that the Browns have four tackles, both of those remaining spots can be devoted to interior players. Likely, both interior players will have the ability to snap even if they aren't listed at center.
Dunn and Froholdt may be the favorites to win the two spots, but Huffman will compete and should they suffer another injury, they would still have two available. Should Huffman fall short, he may end up on the practice squad.
The Browns had high hopes for Harris this season and the expectation is he can return to reclaim his spot next season. Nevertheless, if there was a position on the offensive line where the Browns could endure a season-ending injury, it was always center. Losing Bitonio and Teller would be catastrophic and the Browns just experienced a year where their tackle position was decimated by injuries.
Even if the dropoff at center was less than the rest of the Browns offensive line, it doesn't reduce the challenge the Browns center will face this season. Just within the division, the Browns will face D.J. Reader and the Cincinnati Bengals twice, Michael Pierce with the Baltimore Ravens twice and a combo platter of Tyson Alualu and Chris Wormley for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Browns will have to decide if Pocic, Froholdt, Dunn and Huffman are enough to handle that load. If not, the Browns could potentially look outside the team. The most obvious place to look would be to J.C. Tretter, who the Browns released ahead of the offseason. He's still available as a free agent.
Bitonio has speculated that teams are hesitant to sign Tretter because he's the President of the NFLPA. Possible, but there are other factors at play. The first is money. The Browns owed Tretter a base salary of $9.1 million for this season, which was the driving force in why they released him. Tretter may know he's not getting that money back, but he's also not likely to reduce his price that much nor should. He's been an excellent center who never missed a game due to injury in five seasons with the Browns.
The second issue is Tretter's knees. Tretter always dragged himself onto the field and played at a high level, but he endured significant pain in the process. He almost never practiced as a result. In the thick of the season, teams will deal with it because the product continues to be good, but typically teams revile at the prospect at signing a player they know won't be able to practice.
Realistically, as long as Tretter is in shape, the Browns could basically sign Tretter two weeks ahead of the first game of the season and not have an issue. The offense hasn't changed. He knows it as well as anyone connected to the organization. It's simply a matter of acclimating to contact.
If that is indeed a conversation the Browns are having within the building, they will use every available minute up until that point trying to get the players they have on the roster ready. This is where having Bill Callahan as well as two All-Pro guards becomes so valuable as it provides an environment that should amplify the player of whoever is snapping the ball for the Browns.
