With Joe Thomas announcing his retirement from the Cleveland Browns and the NFL during this past offseason, this leaves the Browns with a hole on the offensive line, which the Buffalo Bills may be able to help them fill.
Joe Thomas was an absolute rock on the offensive front as he held down the fort for the Browns for 167 games. His absence now leaves the Browns with a dilemma on what they will do to fill his position. With the 2018 NFL draft, the Browns now have some roster and franchise decisions to make surrounding their offense.
With names such as former Bill Tyrod Tylor and former Dolphin Jarvis Landry coming into town, the Browns front office will need to string together an offensive line that can help protect and preserve the health and longevity of their talent.
Currently, the Bills are still locked in at the 12th and 22nd positions, but they may be able to come to the aid of the Browns on the offensive side of the ball. There has been much talk of the Bills trading up in the draft. This might be very interesting for the Browns, as the majority of the top offensive linemen are expected to go in the middle of the first round. Because of this,a trade may be appealing for the Browns as they may want to movedown and steal a left tackle while picking up more draft capital.
If the 22nd pick is something the Browns pursue, they can find a great candidate to fill that left tackle hole in former Louisville Cardinals tackle Geron Christian. Christian was a major factor in the Cardinals success as he started in every game during his first season there. His efforts didn't go unnoticed as he received honorable mentions for an All-ACC nod. Christian brings with him a 6’6”, 298-pound frame that the Browns can utilize and slot into different offensive schemes and fill the void Joe Thomas has left.
In a perfect world, the Browns would come knocking on draft day and will look no further than the Buffalo Bills to work out a roster-altering exchange. If this was to occur, Buffalo could use any picks Cleveland opts to give them to fill much needed holes on the teams depth chart.
Whether they do trade or not, all eyes will be on the Cleveland Browns and the Buffalo Bills come Thursday’s draft in Arlington, Texas.