Cleveland Browns: Opportunity knocking for Greg Robinson

Greg Robinson can stake his claim for a starting job and second contract with the Cleveland Browns playing well against the Houston Texans.

One of the more interesting story lines with the Cleveland Browns is the fact they have a couple of players other teams gave up on who are producing for them. The most notable is offensive tackle Greg Robinson, who has started the past three games at left tackle, stabilizing the position. Against the Houston Texans, Robinson has an opportunity to stake a claim at a starting job potentially for the long term.

Robinson was a mammoth at Auburn with incredible physical gifts that had NFL teams drooling. At 6-5, 330 pounds, he was a mauling run blocker that could generate pancakes almost at will and was a big reason they were able to get to the 2013 National Championship. The issue for Robinson was how raw he was as a pass blocker.

That didn’t stop the now Los Angeles Rams from taking him second overall in the 2014 NFL Draft. Betting they could get him to pass block effectively, they bet on his physical tools, they thought he was their franchise left tackle. They moved him around for four seasons while he picked up some bad habits before giving up and trading him for a 2018 sixth-round pick.

The Lions waived Robinson with an injury designation late in the 2017 season and Browns general manager John Dorsey signed him to a one-year minimum contract in June for this season. Now in his fifth year and continuing to develop his game, Robinson is showing out well for the Browns and has been integral in the team’s improvement, enabling them to win two of the three games he’s played.

Facing off against the only player picked ahead of him in his draft class this week in Jadeveon Clowney, Robinson gets the opportunity to show the Browns and the rest of the NFL as a whole why he’s worth a big investment. He’s scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent after the season and if he shows well this week as well as the other four games, it’s going to put pressure on the Browns to extend him.

More from NFL Spin Zone

• Dallas Cowboys made the trade everyone else should have made
• Pittsburgh Steelers rookie sleeper everyone should be talking about
• Anthony Richardson putting jaw-dropping talent on display immediately
• Denver Broncos’ stud wide receiver might be out for a while
• Washington Commanders: Three takeaways from win over Ravens

Despite already being in his fifth year in the league, Robinson only turned 26 years old in October, so he’s barely a year older than fellow offensive tackle and undrafted rookie Desmond Harrison. Robinson could have a ton of football left in front of him and the Browns may have found a potential answer to one of their tackle spots.

The Browns have a question hanging over them at left tackle for the long term and right tackle hasn’t exactly been in great hands either with Chris Hubbard. Robinson could put himself in the mix at either spot and while he is playing left tackle reasonably well currently, he likely would be better suited to play the right side. There are advantages to having someone with his talent at either spot but it all comes down to how consistent he can be in pass protection and if it’s better to have him play the front side.

Robinson’s development is a huge credit to his perseverance. Coming into the league at 21 years old can be overwhelming for anyone, but it’s certainly difficult when raw in pass protection and being expected to plug and play on the blind side. He’s taken plenty of lumps in the process and his pass blocking has largely remained a struggle up until recently where he appears to have broken through.

Part of the hard work for Robinson has been due to partnering with LeCharles Bentley and his staff at Offensive Line Performance, an academy just for offensive linemen. And if asked, Bentley is not afraid to tell anyone they are the best in the world at what they do. From nutrition to strength training to technique, it’s a total investment by the player into the process and the staff in the player. It’s an incredibly difficult regimen, but those who are accepted into the program swear by it. And the results speak for themselves in terms of success stories for players.

It’s not just that the player does what is set up by the program, they learn to answer all of the why’s involved. The science behind their diet, lifting and simply understand how the human body works and how best to generate power. Then, taking that to the practice field where they work on their techniques, often with significant resistance to continue building strength and ingraining the right habits to be a

That can be incredibly difficult for a player. They have to be open minded enough to accept that something they’ve done for years could be completely wrong, rethought and changed. That takes a lot of trust and it’s not a short process, but it’s one that appears to be working for Robinson. Coming out of training camp, he proved valuable enough that the Browns could ship out Shon Coleman in a trade. Now, he’s getting his opportunity to go for a much larger prize.

To this point, Robnson has faced off against the likes against Breeland Speaks, Michael Johnson, Jordan Willis and Takk McKinley. While there are some decent players there, it’s not the best of what the NFL has to offer and that’s what the Browns need to see. The Texans and Clowney represent a massive step up in competition, so if Robinson can do that, Dorsey may be on the phone with Robinson’s agent before the day is over starting to talk about a potential contract extension.

The Browns need someone who can block the best of the best protecting Mayfield’s blindside. Clowney and the Houston Texans are the first of three remaining games that will provide a great test for Robinson. The other two are the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens that are in the top 10 in sacks and have pass rushers lined up across from Robinson that will be a great measuring stick.

Should Greg Robinson be unable to secure a starting tackle job beyond this year, it’s not the end of the world and the Cleveland Browns do have other options. But between his age and his incredible physical gifts, it’s fun to imagine that Robinson could become a long term fixture on this line when he’d be the youngest starter in the group. The fact that Robinson has gotten this far is a testament to the improvement he’s made, but here’s hoping he can keep improving and the Browns end up locking up a player as a long term starter.