The Cleveland Browns’ offensive line was ranked #3 in the league just a few short years ago. This past season, in Week 1, the lineup was the same as that unit that got that superb ranking in 2023, with the exception of OT Dawand Jones in place of Jed Wills at left tackle.
But as the season rolled along, attrition raised its ugly head.
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In the end, the Browns used seven different offensive line configurations. Gone from the starting line-up
were RT Jack Conklin, C Ethan Pocic, RG Wyatt Teller, and LT Jones, who is now back on the basketball court. Backups and practice squad guys became the nucleus of the line, along with seven-time Pro Bowler Joel Bitonio at left guard, as this group’s postseason grade became a #31 ranking.
Cleveland’s offensive line went from physical maulers who dominated defensive fronts to a line that had new nameplates stitched onto the back of the jersey every other week.
After head coach Kevin Stefanski was fired, his entire coaching staff was also released. The new guy can retain as many assistants as he wants, but usually, a new head coach will bring in guys that he knows and has worked with.
That means that last year’s offensive line coach, Mike Bloomgren, wasn’t retained by the new head coach, Todd Monken. Instead, Monken brought in George Warhop as his first offensive hire to coach the offensive line. The two worked together when Monken served as the OC for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2016 to 2018 and continued a close professional relationship. Then they were on the same coaching staff for the past few seasons with the Baltimore Ravens, with Monken as the OC and Warhop as the offensive line coach.
Warhop was also looking for work since the Ravens’ head coach, John Harbaugh, was also released, so, like the Browns, Baltimore’s entire staff was also now unemployed. Instead of waiting to see who the Ravens hire as the new head coach, Warhop accepted the position of the offensive line coach with Cleveland under Monken.
Now what? What is Warhop’s coaching philosophy?
The good aspect of Warhop coming on board is that Monken has worked with him for four years. Both stints, Monken was the OC while Warhop was the offensive line coach, and each time, the head coach was fired, and then both men moved on to new teams. Tampa head coach Dirk Koetter was released from the Bucs after going 5-11-0 in 2018. So, everyone was fired.
The Browns’ offensive line from that 2023 season would drive players into the dirt and knock the crap out of their defensive counterparts. These guys had Pro Bowl and All-Pro hardware. They had consistency and worked as a cohesive unit.
Now, Warhop hopes to recapture that attitude and productive nature.
The Ravens’ offensive line averaged a Top-10 ranking over the past three seasons and finished #16 in Pro Football Focus last season despite several injuries.
Now, with the Browns, an entirely different group of offensive linemen signed in free agency is ready to step onto the field for the orange and brown. Gone are the brute force guys who pushed and shoved defensive players every week.
Tytus Howard is projected as the right tackle. Last year’s backup, Teven Jenkins, is penciled in at right guard but could be a backup. Elgton Jenkins can play all five positions, but is projected to be the new center or right guard. Left guard could be being saved for Bitonio if he decides he wants to give it one more year, but in the likelihood that he retires instead, Zion Johnson was signed away from the Los Angeles Chargers.
That leaves left tackle. Jones can play either tackle spot and, for now, is listed at LT.
The NFL draft will most likely throw all of this into another dimension. The majority of NFL draft sites have Cleveland taking an offensive lineman in Round 1 with either the #6 or the #24 pick, and then selecting another guard or tackle in a later round. Both players could conceivably win a starting role or become quality depth.
That would become Warhop’s problem to solve. For one, don’t expect Warhop to be like Bloomgren or become the teacher that former O-Line guru Bill Callahan was.
Warhop is a different breed but has similar traits to Callahan. He is an old dude like Callahan, and at age 64, he has coached a ton of ball. With the 17 jobs he has had since 1983, he was the offensive line coach at 15 of those stops, including the Browns from 2009-2013.
Known for being detail-oriented, Warhop focuses on the minute aspects of playing each position. This develops consistency across all five positions.
A lot of O-Line coaches focus more on arm and upper body strength and then demonstrates on how to push and shove their defensive counterpart. Warhop teaches hand placement first and foremost. Of course, this takes upper-body strength and violent hands.
While Bloomgren and Callahan had basically the same players year after year, Warhop will have to develop conformity with five guys who will be melded into one cohesive group all of a sudden. Each player has come from somewhere else and then been thrown into the mix with Jones, the lone starter.
Basically, Warhop is facing a set of circumstances that no one anticipated. Teller decided he wanted out of Cleveland, and was a free agent anyway. The team didn’t re-sign another free agent, Pocic, and then restructured Conklin’s contract, making him a free agent as well, since he was always hurt. Bitonio still hasn’t informed the team what he wants to do, so his return is in flux.
Warhop will now have to blend all these new guys as much as he can from a schematic standpoint. He does teach being physical, but wants his players to be consistent with footwork, being consistent with hand placement, and striving to finish a little bit more.
He will put his own flavor on things with high expectations.
Warhop has the sign of approval of former Browns great Joe Thomas. He was already familiar with Howard back in 2022 while both were with the Houston Texans. The new coach demands the best a player can bring to the field, and if a player can’t meet the energy, they won’t be starting or even on the roster.
He coaches consistency. That is one of the best attributes an offensive line coach can have as well.
After Howard played for Warhop, he actively recruited Elgton Jenkins from the Green Bay Packers. The two had remained friends since they both played in the 2019 Senior Bowl. Jenkins stated that Howard called him after he found out that Browns GM Andrew Berry had an interest. Howard told Jenkins that playing for Warhop was the perfect opportunity.
Johnson played for Jim Harbaugh in LA, and both Monken and Warhop came from Baltimore, where they worked under John Harbaugh.
Basically, Warhop is one of those offensive line coaches who draws guys in just with his level of coaching. He is pretty well known as one of the elite offensive line coaches. He is very good at teaching run blocking techniques, and is what he is known for. Look at how the Ravens were dominant in running the ball the last few years.
Part of his coaching is not to focus on total yards per game or the number of carries, but it’s about yards per carry and teaching his players how to remain engaged in order to achieve this.
What should Browns fans expect from Warhop? He is demanding. He is fair. He holds guys accountable. And he treats every player the same.
But it starts with the mentality up front.
