What 53-Man Roster Surprises Are In Store For Cleveland?
Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
With the first portion of OTAs under our belts, Cleveland Browns fans will no longer get satisfaction from just seeing football clips on Twitter. Most have moved on to trying to figure out what Cleveland’s final roster may look like. We gotta know!
Currently, teams have until 4 PM EST on August 27th to finalize their roster. In years past, there was a phased cutdown schedule after each preseason week, but starting last year the league changed the requirement to just one cutdown day.
That means teams can have up to 90 players on their roster for the full preseason, followed by teams getting chopped down to 53 guys. This change allows teams to get a longer look at bubble players, but does make decisions that much tougher on the day of cutbacks.
General managers like Andrew Berry must not only look at the talent of the players but also, the years remaining on their contract, salary, age, injuries, etc. With all those factors in play, there is usually at least one or two big surprises on the final roster. As we inch closer and closer to August, let’s try spotting where a few surprises could potentially happen in Cleveland.
Changes on the Offensive Line
One big concern is the health of Jack Conklin, who suffered a season-ending knee injury the last two seasons. During his short stint in 2023, he did appear to be back to form, but after another injury, the Browns are dealing with a new round of question marks.
If Berry were to cut or trade Conklin at this point, the savings would not impact the 2024 season, but would be massive (more than $30 million) over the next three seasons. This makes Conklin’s situation a rare instance where body count may be more important than money.
In a normal situation where cutting a guy like Conklin saves a team no money, it’s a no-brainer to keep them. But in this circumstance, the Browns will want to keep slots open on this roster for younger talent. The best guess is Cleveland will carry nine, perhaps ten offensive linemen. If you take out the starting five (assuming Dawand Jones starts at right tackle), there are easily four guys who make sense to keep over Conklin.
Zak Zinter, James Hudson, Luke Wypler, and potentially Roy Mbaeteka all make sense to have take a roster spot over an aging Conklin. And remember, Jones showed in his time starting last year that he was more than capable of holding down that starter role.
Conklin is a good guy and between injuries to Jedrick Wills and Jones in the past, as well as inconsistencies from Hudson, he very well may make this final roster. But if he looks like he’s lost a step or one of these young players really shines in camp, Conklin could easily be the odd man out and find himself looking for another job.
Short Tenure for Former Third-Round Pick
The other player on this roster who may have a very short leash is Siaki Ika. Last year’s play was far less than desirable from the 2023 third-round pick, to the point where he could be packing his bags if he can’t show a ton of improvement at camp.
Some will want to argue that there is no way Berry will give up on a second-year player that quickly, but just remember that he fired his offensive staff last offseason after making it to the playoffs. That’s not the move of a GM that wants to be patient. Berry is all-in on the 2024 season, so if he must cut loose a draft pick to add a veteran who he knows can play, don’t put it past him to pull the trigger.
Ika is fighting an uphill battle with a loaded depth chart and a lack of talent. Dalvin Tomlinson and Shelby Harris are the clear-cut starters at defensive tackle (for now), with Quinton Jefferson and Mike Hall Jr. likely right behind them. That’s four guys who are clearly ahead of Ika on the depth chart, and that’s without mentioning Maurice Hurst, who was the second or third-best defensive tackle on the roster last season before his injury.
Perhaps you could argue a veteran like Jefferson or someone who has faced injuries like Hurst is at a bigger risk of getting cut, but it’s tough to see Berry taking that risk. Jefferson has missed five total games over the last six seasons, and Hurst has shown when healthy he can be a dominant force.
To this point, Ika has shown to be a liability in the run game with his lack of leverage and athleticism, and non-existent in the passing game because of his size. Unless Ika is able to show a level we haven’t seen from him yet, it may be time to call a spade a spade. It might be shocking, but this experiment could be over quickly.
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