Jedrick Wills Jr. is the best option at left tackle for the Browns in 2023

There is a lot of chatter on Jedrick Wills Jr., but he is the best option for the Browns at left tackle this season.

For some odd reason, Cleveland Browns fans have talked themselves out of Jedrick Wills Jr. and weren't too pleased to learn that the team is likely going to pick up his fifth-year option.

This is really a no-brainer of a situation for general manager Andrew Berry and the Browns despite what many critics might want to say. This will give them another year for him to progress in their system and become a top-level left tackle in the NFL.

Cleveland has until the early days of summer to make a decision on Wills' option, so it is not like this will be a rushed decision. According to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, "the Browns were pleased with Wills' progress in 2022."

There aren't too many viable options the Browns could look at in free agency, even with the Titans releasing Taylor Lewan on Wednesday. Lewan is not someone that Cleveland should even entertain as he has been hampered with injuries the past three seasons, including missing 15 games last year with a knee injury,

Could the Browns look for an upgrade in April's NFL Draft? Sure, but that isn't likely as their are other holes on the roster to fix, primarily defensive tackle, wide receiver, and safety. Additionally, relying on a rookie to fill a vital role on the team is pretty dicey.

One area that Wills will yet again have to work on is his penalties. In his rookie campaign, he totaled 11 before cutting that number drastically in 2021 with four, but doubled that number in 2023. Far too often during last season, Browns drives were halted due to penalties, so it's not just a Wills issue.

Where he has been good for the Browns is in pass protection, allowing just six sacks in three years. He is much better as a pass-blocker than in the run game, but that bodes well with Deshaun Watson under center for 2023.

There is also this false narrative that he is lazy, unmotivated, and gives up on plays. That is simply not the case, but a narrative that football "experts" rave over, mostly because they see clips on Twitter.

At the end of the day, Jedrick Wills Jr. is the best option for the Cleveland Browns at left tackle in 2023.