Cleveland Browns: 4 Offensive linemen to sign as Covid-19 opt out replacements
By Randy Gurzi
The Cleveland Browns could fill some empty roster spots in free agency
With the uncertainty of COVID-19 hovering over us all right now, the NFL decided to allow players an opportunity to opt-out of the 2020 NFL Season. In order to allow teams time to prepare for any players they lost, they gave them a deadline of Aug. 6 and when that passed 66 players had decided to play it safe and stay home this season. Five of those players were members of the Cleveland Browns.
The biggest name to decide to stay home was nose tackle Andrew Billings, the Browns coveted free-agent pickup from the Cincinnati Bengals. Billings was expected to correct the poor run defense Cleveland had last season and while the depth is better on the line in 2020, losing a potential starter is tough.
As for the remaining four players who opted out, they all happened to be offensive linemen. The biggest name there is Drew Forbes who had an outside shot of knocking off Wyatt Teller in the battle for the starting job at right guard.
From there it was tackle Drake Dorbeck and guards Colby Gossett and Malcolm Pridgeon who elected to opt-out. While all their contracts will roll over to the 2021 season, losing four offensive linemen is tough for any team — even if those players are expected to primarily serve as depth pieces.
Cleveland now finds themselves thin at a spot that has been an issue in recent seasons. They had hoped the addition of tackles Jedrick Wills and Jack Conklin would help but they could look to add even more help now. With that being said, here are four free agents they could sign to replace the depth they lost.