Injuries seemed to have finally calmed down for the Cleveland Browns ahead of their Week 11 contest against the New Orleans Saints, but the bug quickly spread once again with Dawand Jones fracturing his leg in the game and with other offensive linemen seeming to get nicked and bruised up against the Saints' defensive line.
While they were far from the biggest storyline of the loss to the Saints - the defense straight up giving up in the fourth quarter seems to have taken up that mantle for the time being - it's still become a major issue for Cleveland as they begin to try and experiment with their offense in this losing season.
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Ahead of Week 12 and the team's Thursday bout with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Browns' practice featured a ton of names on their injury list. While most of those players did practice, either in a limited capacity or just regularly, two major names stand out for the Browns' offensive line ahead of the game against their AFC North rival - Joe Bitonio and Jedrick Wills Jr.
today's practice participation report pic.twitter.com/0CSmH9E2RG
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 18, 2024
Bitonio, a guard for the Browns's offensive line, has been listed on the injury report for several weeks. Ahead of. Week 12, Bitonio is listed as having participated in limited practice with a pectoral injury. He played in Week 11 with seemingly no issues, so it's likely this injury is something he's choosing to play through.
What's far more concerning is Wills' inclusion on this list. According to the Browns, Wills didn't practice on Monday as he's still nursing a knee injury suffered earlier in the season. That was a big part of why Jones had taken his place at left tackle - Wills didn't want to keep jeopardizing his knee health and his recovery, so he made the decision to sit out for a while until he was back to 100 percent.
But, Jones is now done for the season, too. And, Wills has yet to show any progress on that knee. So, the Browns might be faced with an extremely thinned offensive line if Wills is unable to go at LT in Week 12 - a major possibility considering head coach Kevin Stefanski was pretty noncommittal about Wills' availability when he spoke to media on Monday ahead of Week 12.
German Ifedi, the 30 year old veteran tackle who took over for Jones in Week 11, might end up getting the start if Wills is still sidelined. This season is a wash for a lot of reasons, but the health of this O-line has been one of the biggest ones.