Can the Cleveland Browns fix their offensive line problem?

The Cleveland Browns were thought to have a strong offensive line to start the year. That couldn't be further from the truth.

So far, the offensive line has been porous allowing an obscene amount of quarterback pressures. The New York Giants had eight sacks on Sunday. They haven't been able to open up any rushing lanes either.

There are countless reasons for the line to be strugglins. For starters, the team moved on from offensive line guru Bill Callahan this offseason. They also installed a new offense with new terminology. Another reason is injury. The team has yet to play a snap with the entire projected starting five offensive lineman this year through the first three games.

The interior of the line has been the weakest point. Joel Bitonio is having a career worst year and Ethan Pocic is having a less than desirable start to the year.

The one bright spot has been Wyatt Teller who graded out positively. But Teller was unable to finish the game Sunday and had to be replaced by rookie Zak Zinter.

General manager Andrew Berry had to have a feeling that this could happen this year. That helps to explain why Zinter was drafted in the third round and why Javion Cohen was prioritized as a un-drafted free agent.

The tackle position has been the most puzzling this year. The team knew that Jedrick Wills Jr. and Jack Conklin would not be ready to play in the regular season opener. They also knew that Dawand Jones spent the offseason rehabbing from his injury too.

However they didn't move with urgency to find help at the position. Instead they were content to just run it back with James Hudson III.

Now that the season is underway, the Browns still don't have any answers at the tackle position. Wills left the game injured and Jones was battling injuries all game too. The team made the questionable decision to not call up Germain Ifedi for this game. This resulted in the Browns having to slide Bitonio out to left tackle, something he hasn't done since college.

The bad news for the Browns is that there are not a lot of options on the free agent market right now. The team could look to make a trade as Berry has proven to be aggressive. The most likely course though is for the team to just hope and pray for health.

So what can the Browns do to help their offense get going with the poor offensive line play?

For starters they can do more of what they did in the second half against the Giants. They started rolling Deshuan Watson out of the pocket, allowing him to use his legs to make plays.

They also can start having the running backs and tight ends chip more before releasing for their routes. This should allow the line to be in better position to block the defenders for the rest of the play.

The Browns at least have some playmakers are reciever. They have the ability to get open quick and to make contested catches. If Kevin Stefanski and company are able to game plan like they did against the Jacksonville Jaguars, they should be able to win games even with the poor offensive line play.

More Browns coverage