The offensive line is undoubtedly one of the strengths of the Cleveland Browns, but is there a chance that the status of left guard Jason Pinkston and the relative weakness of right guard Shawn Lauvao could place the offensive guard position at a premium in free agency or the draft?

During a breakfast meeting with local reporters early Friday morning, head coach Rob Chudzinski commented on the uncertainty surrounding Pinkston, who suffered a blood clot last season:

Chud on OG Jason Pinkston (recovering from blood clot): I'm not sure of his status and probably won't be for a while.

— Vic Carucci (@viccarucci) February 22, 2013

Scott Petrak from the Chronicle-Telegram added that Pinkston has not been cleared to return to football.

In an article published by Mary Kay Cabot back in December, Pinkston did say that he was feeling pretty good and was working out and playing basketball. In the article, Pinkston said that he needed to be on bloodthinners for six months. Based on the timeline that Pinkston gave, he could be off of them some time over the next month. He would need to have an MRI or a CT Scan before I beginning activities again. The Browns informally talked with top offensive guard prospect Chance Warmack at the Combine.

Should we read too much into Chudzinski's words? He was more confident in speaking about Chris Gocong's return, but not Pinkston's.