At 2-6, it’s obvious the Cleveland Browns have a lot of missing pieces on both sides of the ball. If this team is going to turn things around, it has to start this offseason, which is going to be a pivotal one for the trajectory of the whole organization.
With a pair of first-round picks, the Browns are armed with plenty of ammo to make a big splash in the draft. It will be one of the most important drafts in recent team history, especially considering how the team is projected to be over the salary cap, and thus could have trouble making any noise in free agency.
Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon recently wrote about each team’s biggest 2026 free agency need after the 2025 trade deadline. While he pointed out the obvious needs for Cleveland, he noted that the highest free-agency priority is to improve the offensive line.
“Quarterback might seem obvious, but there’s a good chance they let Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders fight it out in 2026 before moving on if neither succeeds. Instead, the focus has to be on providing more support to whoever is under center. Joel Bitonio, Wyatt Teller, Ethan Pocic and Cam Robinson are all pending free agents on the wrong side of 30,” Gagnon wrote.
Bitonio, Teller, and Pocic have held down the middle of the offensive line for years, but they are not guaranteed to return in 2026. If the Browns plan on replacing any of them via free agency, it’s going to be slim pickings because the three of them could very well be the best available free agent at each of their respective positions.
Browns 17 free agents in 2026:
*David Njoku
*Wyatt Teller
*Joel Bitonio
*Martin Emerson
*Alex Wright
Shelby Harris
*Devin Bush
*Corey Bojorquez
Jerome Ford
DeAndre Carter
David Bell
Cam Robinson
Teven Jenkins
Cam Thomas
Jerome Baker
Rayshawn Jenkins
Damontae Kazee* = starter
— Roberto Shenanigans (@Rob_Shenanigans) October 9, 2025
As talented as each of these guys is, it’s clear that the Browns need to make big changes up front. Tackle has been a major issue due to Jack Conklin and Dawand Jones’ injury history, but that is an issue that could be solved during the draft.
Great tackles don’t hit free agency too often, but there will be options at guard and center that are younger and have more upside. There is a long way to go before free agency, but Cleveland’s front office is going to have to get creative to fill these gaps with little to no cap space.
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