Cleveland used the ninth overall pick in this year’s draft on offensive tackle Spencer Fano, and while plenty of the offseason attention has shifted toward the receiver additions and the ongoing quarterback competition, one veteran draft analyst wants to make sure that pick does not get lost in the shuffle. According to Fox Sports’ Rob Rang, Fano may be the single best schematic fit anywhere in this year’s AFC rookie class.
Rang made his case as part of a broader breakdown of the best fits from each division, and he explained why Fano deserved that recognition over some of Cleveland’s more heavily discussed skill position rookies.
“Ignoring Fano just to highlight others selected later doesn’t give the Browns enough credit for accurately recognizing the much greater depth at receiver than tackle in this draft, and that it doesn’t matter who will be catching the passes, or throwing the ball, if the blocking up front isn’t up to par. Fano was the best pass protector of this class, and he’ll be forged by fire practicing daily against Jared Verse. He’ll start immediately and soon prove to be a franchise cornerstone,” Rang wrote.
Cleveland’s draft class this year brought in genuine talent at receiver, including KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston, both of whom carry real upside heading into their rookie seasons. None of that talent matters if the offensive line cannot consistently protect whoever ends up under center.
Fano’s college tape backed up the evaluation that his pass protection was the best among any tackle in this class. That skill set could not be more relevant given who Fano now faces on a daily basis. Practicing against Jared Verse, one of the more disruptive pass rushers to enter the league in recent years, gives Fano an immediate trial by fire that few rookie tackles ever get to experience before their first regular season snap.
Fano squaring off against Verse every day should accelerate his development at a position that often takes rookies significant time to fully grasp at the professional level.
If Fano lives up to this projection, Cleveland may have found one of the more overlooked building blocks of this entire draft class in the trenches rather than at a skill position.
NEXT: Denzel Ward Reveals Why He's Fired Up About Training Camp
