When Will the Cleveland Browns Address Their Needs on Offensive Line?

Free agency kicked off on Tuesday afternoon, and the Cleveland Browns are the only team in the AFC North to have made any roster additions as of this writing.

However, all of those additions have come on the defensive side of the ball. They picked up two defensive ends—Juqua Parker and Frostee Rucker—cutting ineffective DE Jayme Mitchell as a result. And they re-signed cornerback Dimitri Patterson to a three-year, $16 million deal that will see him start alongside Joe Haden.

On offense, the Browns have done nothing but retain two of their own free agents, tight end Alex Smith and lineman John Greco.

While the Browns certainly need to make additions at both running back and wide receiver, neither position can have much effectiveness without a good offensive line maintaining protection and making blocks.

According to Football Outsiders, the Browns' offensive line ranked 23rd overall when it comes to the run game, and when looking at the team's Adjusted Line Yards number compared to the backs' abilities to get to the second level, the Browns heavily rely on their line to drive their running game, rather than their running backs.

That means that Cleveland needs a strong offensive line in order to have a good run game. And with the defenses around the AFC North being so strong against the run, it's necessary for the Browns to improve their offensive line to have a chance to stand up to them.

Free agency isn't the only way to bolster an offensive line—and sometimes it's a bad way to do so. There are two types of free agent linemen: Ones who are incredibly good at what they do and thus become too expensive to stay with their old teams, or veterans nearing the end of their careers who no longer perform well enough to warrant the salary they would have gotten.

However, there is one free agent offensive lineman who falls into the former category whom the Browns could afford and who also fills an immediate need—right tackle Eric Winston.

Winston's got his fair share of suitors to be sure, and it would take a lot more than a solid contract to lure him to Cleveland. But the fact that they aren't even reported to be in play for him—the four teams scheduling meetings with him are the Detroit Lions, Miami Dolphins, Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs—is baffling.

The Browns released their long-time right tackle Tony Pashos earlier this week, and rightfully so, but once they did it seemed like Winston would be the perfect player for them to take a look at to fill that hole.

Instead, it doesn't look like Cleveland has any interest in punching up their offensive line via free agency. Yes, that leaves the draft, and there are some serious top offensive line prospects they could use any of their picks on, but a mix of new blood and proven veteran talent would serve them best in both 2012 and beyond.

Cleveland's defense should be fine. Yes, they need more weapons on offense, but ignoring the offensive line will damage their chances to win far more than perhaps they realize.

Unless they make aggressive moves to improve it in the coming weeks and months, the struggles will continue for the Browns in both the NFL and AFC North.

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