The Cleveland Browns need Dawand Jones to step up.
More than that, they’re banking on him.
Jones will enter this season as the starting left tackle, a position that has been a bit of an issue over the past couple of years.
And while he’s shown glimpses of great play there, he recently admitted that he didn’t like to play on the left side of the offensive line.
According to Ashley Bastock of Cleveland.com, he admitted that, as a right-handed player, playing on the right side came more naturally for him, whereas being the left tackle required more finesse:
“My main thing is just to take the challenge on,” Jones said on Wednesday after the Browns’ fifth OTA session. “I kept it as real as possible with [Andrew Berry] I personally don’t like playing left tackle like that, but I don’t care. I’m athletic. It comes with the nature of the game.”
Even so, he’s more than willing to embrace the challenge.
Jones played at both left and right tackle during his days at Ohio State.
He looked the part when he made three starts at LT in 2024 before a season-ending broken left fibula injury forced him to miss the final seven games of the season.
Even so, he didn’t give up a single sack and only allowed six total pressures in 176 snaps at left tackle.
Jones’ skill and physical traits have never been doubted, and even if he doesn’t like playing left tackle as much, he seems willing to make the adjustment and leave it all on the field.
Still, this will be a crucial season for him, as he’s sustained season-ending injuries in his first two years in the league, and he needs to prove that he can stay healthy before the Browns feel comfortable making a long-term commitment to him.
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