Brandon Thorn ranks NFL Offensive Lines, Browns fare poorly

Brandon Thorn, host of the Trench Warfare podcast, is an analyst that has really focused his work on the offensive line and he tweeted out a ranking of all 32 NFL teams in six different categories. The Cleveland Browns are in the second lowest ranking of below average along with six other teams. And in terms of what the Browns will have in 2019 that's proven, it's difficult to argue with him.

Here are my OL unit tiers. It's obviously early but I feel pretty good about it. I think most units could bump up or down one as the season plays out: pic.twitter.com/6ZjgKBa83w
— Brandon Thorn (@BrandonThornNFL) May 25, 2019

Joel Bitonio is fantastic at left guard. J.C. Tretter had a good year and center on one leg. He may well get some post season honors if he can be healthy for an entire year. Those are two high quality offensive linemen the Browns have up front and perhaps those two warrant having the group bumped up to average.

The problem is the rest of the line is made up of guys the Browns hope to provide average play and a spot that's up in the air to be decided in right guard. Chris Hubbard was average at best and Greg Robinson was enough at left tackle. Both benefited a great deal from Baker Mayfield's ability to work in the pocket and make his tackles look better. It's not a given that Hubbard will win the job either as he faces off against Kendall Lamm in a competition.

Robinson, in a contract year with an opportunity to secure a lucrative contract after this season, seems likely to be no worse than last year, but may take a step forward. He has a ton of reps to learn from and should have more confidence. Robinson has remarkable physical gifts and hopefully this coming season, he can take more advantage of them when it comes to the running game.

Right guard is a question mark, but the Browns do have talented options. Austin Corbett, the team's second round pick from last year and Eric Kush stand out among them. They have Kyle Kalis who has made some noise in OTAs as well. Replacing Kevin Zeitler is an incredibly difficult task and they have to expect some drop off there.

Overall, the list seems solid. It seems like the Minnesota Vikings offensive line is no better than the Browns even if they did draft a very talented center in Garrett Bradbury in the first round. No one is great on that unit and he has them as average.

In a vacuum, it's not unfair to have concerns about the Browns front heading into the season. Beyond cost, the Browns are just hoping to upgrade the unit, likely moving on from both starting tackles. The Browns do have some depth though, so outside of an injury to Bitonio or Tretter, they can survive an injury up front. On the year, they need to get through the year and keep Baker Mayfield up right. If they can do that, it was a successful year.