Much of the conversation around head coach Todd Monken and the Cleveland Browns this offseason has centered on the looming rebuild of their offensive line. As Tuesday’s pair of roster moves prove, you sometimes have to remove the existing structure first before getting to work on the next project.
Therein lies the problem for Cleveland, which announced the release of two reserve offensive linemen in veteran Cornelius Lucas and undrafted rookie Justin Osborne. Both moves are unsurprising and will save the Browns some modest salary cap space (about $2 million total). But the painful part is the depth of these cuts, as in, how much of the team's returning offensive line group will even be leftover?
Lucas, who signed a two-year deal with the Browns last March for what was his age-34 season, was scheduled to carry a $3.65 million cap hit into the new league year, and to say he struggled in some spot-start duty early in the 2025 regular season would be a massive understatement. As Zac Jackson of The Athletic put it, "he was always atop the early March list," and Osborne never played a snap in 2025 due to a back injury.
The Browns have made official the releases of OL Cornelius Lucas and Justin Osborne. The Lucas move was always atop the early March list and saves almost $2 million in cap space.
— Zac Jackson (@AkronJackson) March 3, 2026
The Lucas move was all but confirmed when the Browns acquired right tackle Tytus Howard in a trade with the Houston Texans on Monday morning. Cutting Lucas will help offset some of the cost associated with Howard’s new money hitting the books, but not much. General manager Andrew Berry and company have a lot more work to do on that front.
Most disappointing? The Browns’ biggest roster voids remain along the offensive line, and moves like these serve as another harsh reminder of the team’s poor advanced planning at those key positions.
The Browns’ O-line overhaul extends beyond the starters
There was some hope that Lucas could fill a depth role for the Browns in 2025, as he was coming off some strong seasons with the Washington Commanders. Unfortunately, he wound up being another aging Browns lineman who was slowed by injuries and struggled to make a significant impact when granted opportunities.
He’s now part of a mass exodus of Browns linemen that could include Joel Bitonio, Wyatt Teller, Jack Conklin, and Ethan Pocic when the new league year kicks off with free agency next week. The lone Week 1 starter currently under contract is tackle Dawand Jones, who was lost for the season in Week 3 of the 2025 season due to a knee injury.
Even with Howard now in the mix, the Browns should be just as concerned with solidifying their top backups as they are with their new starting five. Whether the team views Jones as a starter or potential swing tackle remains to be seen, and their other top reserves — tackle KT Leveston, center Luke Wypler, and guard Zak Zinter — hardly produced high-end film in 2025 for the new coaching staff to sink their teeth into.
The Howard move was strategic, as it helped the Browns score a solid veteran starter without having to overextend in free agency. That still might be unavoidable, though, as Berry’s Browns have backed themselves into a corner here. They’re going to need to sign or acquire more starting-caliber players for the offensive line in March, so they can then focus on filling out the second unit with rookies in April’s draft.
There’s a path for the Browns to get there, and they obviously will. But at the moment, the team’s lack of bodies up front is concerning, especially along the interior. Tuesday's news just fuels the burning question on every fan’s mind right now: How did the Browns allow themselves to get to this point?