00:00Brian Baldinger, Baldy himself, Odyssey NFL insider, was on with the Mono Boys earlier today.
00:06And while he talked about the quarterbacks, he talked about the Miles Garrett trade,
00:09while he talked about all these things, it was interesting to hear his opinion on the
00:14Browns' rebuild offensive line.
00:15They rebuilt the offensive line, how quickly?
00:18I mean, it's five new starters.
00:19I don't know the last time I've seen five new starters on an offensive line in this league.
00:23I can't remember a team changing five offensive linemen out.
00:26Now, that doesn't happen.
00:28Those guys don't build chemistry and start, you know, blocking for the backs they have
00:32and protecting the quarterback without some level of growing pains there.
00:37And so how does that come about right now?
00:39I'm anxious to kind of watch just that development, especially in light of, you know, the Joel
00:43Batonios, Wyatt Tellers, you know, just real pillars in that Cleveland Brown locker room
00:48for a long, long time that aren't there anymore.
00:50So I want to see, like, who takes charge up front and how quickly it comes together.
00:55He's right.
00:56I also don't know how to quantify this.
00:58What do you mean?
01:00Meaning, like, it is something that if you didn't pick the right guys, if you didn't
01:05bring in the right assortment of guys, or you can't find the right five guys, it is going
01:11to hold you back this year.
01:13But at the same point, like, I don't think them swapping out five guys, if you pick the
01:18right five guys, you're going to figure it out.
01:20Yeah, I would think so.
01:21I'd ask you this.
01:22How long do you think it'll take before this team starts to gel?
01:24One of the cases that the, I don't even know if they're anti-Shador or pro-Shador, I can't
01:29tell, but the people that want Shador to start second in this battle is the idea that week
01:33six, week seven, week eight, whatever that is, the offensive line would be in a better
01:36spot.
01:38I think that's a fair thought.
01:40I'm not going to put it towards whether or not to start Shador or not.
01:42I don't know that I necessarily, well, I don't agree with the starting Shador second side
01:45of it, but I don't even know if I necessarily agree with the offensive line will be better
01:48week six, week seven, week eight, week nine.
01:50Now, traditionally, obviously, you get better as the year moves on, and obviously, you watch
01:55the first month of NFL football, for the most part, is very hard on offensive linemen as
01:59they're trying to get together.
02:00But from an injury standpoint, at least in week one, you know all five are healthy and are going
02:04to be available.
02:05I don't know how this is going to change as far as health and injuries are concerned
02:08with this line.
02:09I do think that's the key.
02:10Like, I do think they're going to be growing pains.
02:14Also, given...
02:15We've got a lot of guys on this team with the offensive line that have a lot of histories
02:17of injuries.
02:18Well, but given that we don't know truly who's going to start at center, right?
02:22We think it's going to be Jenkins.
02:24And Jenkins was, by the way, out there in the first Browns 11-on-11 today.
02:27Does not mean he's going to get the job, but yeah.
02:28But it could be Whipler with Jenkins then moving to right guard.
02:32There's a lot of different ways this could go.
02:33But like, I guess my thing is, health is more important.
02:37As long as you guys, as long as they can stay healthy, and at least four of the five guys
02:42can play together, and your left tackle and center are healthy, I think by October, the
02:47offensive line should be where it needs to be.
02:49Yeah, it's fitting on a day where we're going to talk a lot about Joel Batonio and his
02:52announcement today that, I mean, Joel Batonio, one of the healthiest Browns players we've
02:55had over the previous 10 years, and it's fitting.
02:58That's fitting because that's what's going to sink or swim this offensive line, is making
03:02sure they can all stay healthy.
03:03Yeah, and I think right now, if, and this is no knock on Zion Johnson, but right now,
03:09if Joel Batonio was your left guard, and everybody else was filling in around him, I don't think
03:14we'd be having a question about this, right?
03:16Because it's, oh, Joel's going to get figured out.
03:18Yeah, you'd just pencil him in, and you'd be able to figure that out.
03:20And oddly enough, the guy right now, and who knows where he'll play long term, but the
03:25guy right now that I have earmarked to figure it out is the guy that right now they're probably
03:30razzing the hardest, which is Spencer Fano.
03:33I think he is the key to the offensive line, because I think he's going to have to be the
03:38face of the, like, Elton Jenkins is going to help Fano and the barber kid, help him learn
03:45how to be NFL players.
03:46Elton Jenkins might not be here in two years.
03:48Same thing with Zion Johnson, same thing with Tevin Jenkins.
03:51So, like, I look at this and I go, you know, Fano's in the weird position of, hey, you need
03:57to shut up and listen and learn, while also being the guy that I think has to eventually,
04:02over the course of this season and camp, take charge of the offensive line and become the
04:06guy that runs the roost, almost.
04:08Yeah, it's going to be very interesting to figure out.
04:10It's interesting, you said Whipler.
04:11I always thought that if Brailsford could take control of this job and get it right away,
04:16I always thought he would have the leg up there.
04:18That's probably fair, because Whipler's had his chances, and Brailsford was a guy that
04:22I think they really liked.
04:23That's probably fair.
04:24Okay.
04:24I wasn't sure if we're going to have some pushback on that or not.
04:27Honestly, I just think you need...
04:28Because I do think you're a better team.
04:29If Brailsford can actually show you that he can do it at the center spot and you want
04:33to give him a chance, I think you're a better team with that setup.
04:35How so?
04:36Because then you wouldn't have to rely on Tevin Jenkins or Levinston or whoever they decide
04:40in the right guard spot.
04:42You'd have that figured out, because you're going to have Elton Jenkins and the flexibility
04:45that that really provides.
04:46So yes, but my concern is Brailsford probably not going to steal that starting center spot
04:52until camp.
04:53And that is like when we start to get into continuity and growing pains in the offensive
04:58line, if you've got a rookie center and he's kind of leading the way week one, that is
05:04something that can...
05:05Again, I'm being conservative by saying, hey, October, by then the offensive line should
05:11figure itself out as long as they're healthy.
05:13That's a conservative estimate.
05:15It becomes less conservative if you are starting a rookie center.
05:19I think of all the spots, center's the toughest spot to put in a rookie, especially a guy that
05:23isn't a first-round rookie.
05:24For sure.
05:25I also thought Elton Jenkins was better in spots that weren't center, though, too.
05:28I think his value is better in other spots.
05:29And so it is going to be interesting.
05:31Can you legitimately start in the two most important spots on the line in center and
05:35left tackle?
05:36Can you start two rookies there in the idea that we're just going to let the kids play
05:40and work it all out this year?
05:41I also think, and I know that there's been a lot of scuttlebutt, and people get cynical
05:47on the offensive line.
05:48That's fine.
05:48I think we should free ourselves to overreact to every social media video this year, to
05:55every nuance of who's playing and winning.
05:58And I'm not just talking about the quarterback spot, but like Dustin Miami just hit me with
06:02a quote-tweeted Daniel Oyafusi's Shador Sanders to Denzel Boston video and said, wrist up,
06:08wrist up, kids.
06:09There we go.
06:09I don't know if he's being sarcastic or not.
06:11I don't think he is.
06:11I haven't watched the video.
06:12Was it a good video?
06:12I haven't watched it either.
06:14But I'm assuming it's not sarcastic.
06:15If he misses Denzel Boston by like 15 yards, then I'm going to really regret being excited
06:19about this.
06:20But I do think this is such a unique year.
06:24We are letting the kids play.
06:25I think it's okay just to be unabashed homers and get excited about the team, even if we
06:31don't know where it's going to end.
06:32Like, I think this is one of those years where I think we should just be about as, I think
06:36we should drop some of the cynicism, even if Deshaun plays.
06:39And I've really been working on this and just trying to accept the idea that Deshaun could
06:43start this year.
06:44And I don't have to agree with the human being.
06:46I don't have to like how he's presented himself in Cleveland, but it's going to be a one-year
06:51matter.
06:51In the end, I just want the Browns to surprise everyone.
06:54And I just, I want to be looking forward in a year going, yep, they divorced Miles and
07:00we're actually better for it.
07:02And everybody's better.
07:03And we're all moving on to a brighter tomorrow.
07:05I see the Shador touchdown.
07:06That was a beautiful throw.
07:07I also see a Deshaun Watson touchdown as he threw one to Tylan Wallace.
07:11It was also a pretty nice throw, all things considered.
07:14Which one had the better throw?
07:15Come on now.
07:16Shador by a lot.
07:17By a mile, would you say?
07:18It's a really nice throw by Deshaun, though.
07:20I'm not going to discredit it.
07:21It's a nice throw.
07:21I've seen better.
07:22He puts it right there.
07:23Felt like it hung up in the air a little bit too long for me.
07:25I was going to say, I think you need to be the guy that discredits the throws.
07:28Well, I just, no pressure on it, you know?
07:29I mean, if I could...
07:31Could I have hit it?
07:32Deshaun with Deshaun with no pressure.
07:34I've seen this story before, guys.
07:35Yeah, could I?
07:35I've seen this.
07:36Unlike yourself, where you're like, I'm just open to everything, I guess.
07:38I'm not with Deshaun.
07:40No, here's the thing.
07:41I'm just not.
07:41I'm not going to love the Deshaun experience, but I just...
07:44And this is, I think, for different reasons.
07:46I don't really care that he's been pretty crappy as far as representing Cleveland or any of the off-field
07:50stuff at all.
07:51I care about the three years he wasted my time on the field.
07:53I mean, I guess I would care...
07:55It's an important distinction for myself.
07:56...most about blocking a player that I have some intrigue in seeing what he can do this year in Shador,
08:02and that that feels like a bridge to somewhere.
08:04As much interest as I have in Shador, I need to make it abundantly clear,
08:08I have just as much interest in the idea that Deshaun Watson wasted three years of my life.
08:13All right.
08:14And I don't think he can play at a high level anymore,
08:15and I think Under Pressure is the worst decision-maker I've ever seen put on a uniform.
08:19Would you rather watch Shador win four games...
08:22That felt heavy-handed.
08:23...or Deshaun wins six games?
08:26Run that by me one more time?
08:27Shador wins four games.
08:29Deshaun wins six games.
08:30Which are you choosing?
08:31But they all play the entire season?
08:33Yeah.
08:36How does it look?
08:37Give me some context.
08:38Well, one wins four games.
08:40The other wins six games.
08:41Deshaun also won four games while throwing for 4,800 yards,
08:4530-plus touchdowns, fewer than 10 interceptions,
08:47and led the league in completion percentage.
08:50Well, let's assume that if he's got six wins, he's not doing that.
08:52Deshaun is the identifier of, that's a top four season.
08:55How much information do you need, man?
08:57I need a lot.
08:58I obviously need a lot.
08:59I can't afford it.
08:59I've gotümü.
Comments