The Cleveland Browns lost a huge part of their offensive line with the retirement of future Hall of Fame left tackle Joe Thomas this offseason. The void left by Thomas will obviously be a tough one to fill.
The Browns have experimented during the offseason with the different options they have to replace Thomas. One of which is to slide left guard Joel Bitonio over to see if he can take over from his former linemate.
“We put Joel and Chris [Hubbard] over there for a few snaps because this is the time to do it,” offensive line coach Bob Wylie said, via Dan Labbe of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. “It’s the time to experiment. Once you get into camp you get more zeroed in on the guys who will actually play.”
For his part, Bitonio says he’s ready and willing to give left tackle a shot if needed but acknowledged that the plan is for him to stay at his favored left guard spot.
“Anything they need I’m willing to give a try, but I think right now the plan is to find a guy to play left tackle, and I’m going to stick right at left guard,” Bitonio recently said.
Incoming third-year tackle Shon Coleman is likely to get the first crack at left tackle in training camp. Coleman played and started in all 16 games for the Browns at right tackle last season, but it remains to be seen whether he can successfully make the switch to the opposite side.
If Coleman is unable to convince in that role, the Browns may eventually have to turn to Bitonio to take over until they find a more suitable solution to their offensive line situation.
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