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The Cleveland Browns have reportedly decided that left tackle Greg Robinson will return to the starting lineup today against the Denver Broncos.
ESPN’s Josina Anderson was the first to report that Robinson was back after a one-week banishment:
I'm told the current plan is for Greg Robinson to regain his starting spot at LT for the #Browns today at Denver, as of this tweet, per source. Last week Justin McCray started vs the #Patriots.
— ig: josinaanderson (@JosinaAnderson) November 3, 2019
Whether the Browns feel that Robinson learned his lesson while sitting out last week’s game against the New England Patriots, or the coaching staff is dealing with the reality that there are no other options, remains an unanswered question.
Against the Patriots, Gerald McCray got the start at had a somewhat predictable day, as cleveland.com highlighted:
Against the Patriots, McCray allowed five pressures, one sack and committed one penalty (false start). He had the worst offensive grade (32.3) and pass-blocking grade (22.8) on the team, according to PFF. His run-blocking grade (49.2) was only ahead of Eric Kush (44.4) among the linemen.
McCray was bad, but that does not mean that Robinson is good, as cleveland.com pointed out in that same article:
(Robinson’s) PFF grades for six games look like this: Offensive grade: 67.8. Pass-blocking: 69.7 (third among Browns starters through six weeks). Run-blocking: 64.2 (second among Browns starters through six weeks). He has allowed 10 pressures, one sack and committed five penalties (one declined) in 335 offensive snaps. The penalties are the second-most among Browns offensive players (Chris Hubbard and Odell Beckham Jr. have six each).
The ongoing issue at left tackle is just one of three problems the Browns have been dealing with all season as the offensive line, which was ranked No. 2 in the league last year by Pro Football Focus, has now fallen to No. 22 thanks to the play of Robinson, right guard Eric Kush and right tackle Chris Hubbard:
Joel Bitonio is one of the best guards in football, and he’s shown that through the first eight weeks of the season. He leads the team and ranks 12th among all qualifying offensive linemen with his 80.0 overall grade across 446 offensive snaps. The problem is Bitonio is the only Browns lineman playing at a high level right now. Chris Hubbard and Eric Kush have both earned sub-50.0 overall grades in Weeks 1-8.
Giving McCray a chance at left tackle was one solution that did not work out on a limited trial. Replacing Kush with Wyatt Teller at right guard is a possibility, but Teller is still figuring out how to play on the right side of the line, which is a big deal even if some fans try to discount it.
There are no real options at the moment to replace Hubbard, although tackle Kendall Lamm is recovering from the knee injury he suffered in Week 1. Although Lamm may not be much of an improvement as he was part of a Houston Texans offensive allowed a league-high 62 sacks last season, so keep your head on a swivel, Baker Mayfield.
The Browns are in a tough spot when it comes to the offensive line as an offseason of mismanagement at the position by the front office has left the coaching staff scrambling to make something work.