Cleveland Browns O-Line: Big kids rule

Are you ready to give up on Jed Wills? Don’t.

Jedrick Wills is the left tackle, and was part of what was regarded as a monstrously good and very deep tackle class in last season’s draft that didn’t quite materialize, with most of the picks falling flat.

Andrew Thomas (fourth overall), Wills (10th), Mekhi Becton (11th), and Tristan Wirfs (13th) all had supporters as blue-chip prospects, but only Wirfs really lived up to the pre-draft hype. Michael Onwenu, a sixth-round pick by the Patriots might have been the best of all. He is another one of those kids from That School Up North who did not reach his potential playing for That Coach Up North. Go figure.

Wills proved to be better than average as a pass blocker, but made more than his share of rookie mistakes, leading the NFL in penalties.

Are you ready to panic on Wills? Don’t.

First, if you are one of those fans who believe players cannot improve after their rookie season, let me illuminate you. Rookies usually suck. This fan pays extra for the Pro Football Focus stats on players for their entire career.

They won’t let me print all the numbers for you, but what I can report is that I flipped through the top ten graded tackles in the NFL, and none of them graded as well as rookies as they did in 2020. Some of them were significantly below average their first year.

Second, please wish Mr. Wills a Happy 22nd Birthday (May 18). Becoming a starter at age 21, as he did in 2020, is not easy. They refer to ball handling positions as “skill positions” as if the offensive line requires no skill, but that of course is laughably untrue.

The linemen are like martial artists, and their skill level is as high as the monks from the Shaolin Temple. It’s very predictable that an offensive lineman will learn more every year. Especially at age 21, their bodies are still maturing.

They’re not going to hit their peak until their mid-to-late 20’s as long as they stay healthy. A 21-year-old left tackle is very likely to struggle his first season, and have a higher ceiling compared to an older prospect. This is normal.

If you don’t believe it, just spend the extra bucks to look at the annual grades from PFF and look at the progression of the star tackles in the NFL. Very few of them were very good at age 21. But they got better as they got older, their bodies got stronger, and they learned more about how the complexities of offensive line play in the NFL.

This is tough stuff. It’s easy to drink beer at the Browns Backer’s club and explain what they do wrong in slow motion replay (trust me, I’m great at it), not so easy to get it right in real time, 60 times a game.

Third, Wills has Bill Freaking Callahan as his offensive line coach, and he is one of the best in the business. He was the head coach who last led the Oakland Raiders to the Super Bowl back in the day. Yet his specialty is the offensive line, and it is not a coincidence that the offense has been revitalized. Browns fans never saw an inferior offensive line last season. He will take care of business and will be on Mr. Wills like a ton of bricks. Wills has no choice but to improve.

It is easy to predict that Jed Wills will be an improved player in 2021.