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Cleveland Browns: Wyatt Teller must be extended ASAP

By Sam Penix

CLEVELAND, OH - DECEMBER 22: Wyatt Teller #77 of the Cleveland Browns blocks Domata Peko Sr. #96 of the Baltimore Ravens during the game at FirstEnergy Stadium on December 22, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. Baltimore defeated Cleveland 31-15. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - DECEMBER 22: Wyatt Teller #77 of the Cleveland Browns blocks Domata Peko Sr. #96 of the Baltimore Ravens during the game at FirstEnergy Stadium on December 22, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. Baltimore defeated Cleveland 31-15. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images) /
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Cleveland Browns
CLEVELAND, OHIO – DECEMBER 08: Offensive guard Wyatt Teller #77 of the Cleveland Browns celebrates during the first half against the Cincinnati Bengals at FirstEnergy Stadium on December 08, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

Wyatt Teller is looking solid for the Cleveland Browns

When former Cleveland Browns general manager John Dorsey traded guard Kevin Zeitler to the New York Giants for defensive end Olivier Vernon, there was some apprehension about the move. Zeitler was one of the very best interior offensive lineman in the NFL, and the OL’s performance over the second half of the 2018 season was vital to Baker Mayfield’s record-setting rookie year.

Zeitler’s de facto replacement was second-year man Austin Corbett, the 33rd overall pick in 2018 who barely sniffed the field as a rookie.

Corbett didn’t pan out (he was dealt to the Los Angeles Rams for a 2021 fifth), and the starting job was given to free agent Eric Kush. Kush played poorly, and was replaced at the midseason point by Wyatt Teller, a 2018 fifth-round pick by the Buffalo Bills whom Dorsey had acquired (along with a 2021 seventh-rounder) for fifth and sixth-round selections in 2020.

Teller was an upgrade, but it was clear he didn’t yet feel 100 percent comfortable, having switched sides from left to right guard. Heading into the 2020 season, he was set to battle 2019 sixth-rounder Drew Forbes for the starting RG spot, but Forbes decided to opt out of the campaign, leaving Teller the unquestioned starter.

Through three games, Teller has looked like a bona fide All-Pro, and GM Andrew Berry needs to make extending the 25-year-old a top priority — before Teller continues to up his price. But how did he go from the supposed weak link to the best lineman? Let’s dive in and look at that.

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