Getting To Know the 2026 OTackle Draft Class
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I wish Utah would play a little earlier than 10 pm ET on Saturdays. I'm hearing this isn't a great year to need a tackle; but I really want to see Fano play. That said, I want to see all these guys play.
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So this is an interesting tackle class...
In some ways it's a deep class, I like the last three or four guys he listed that are probably 2nd-4th round guys, but I seem to hear "Well this guy might actually slide inside and play guard" about a few of the higher rated guys.
If I'm taking a guy in the top half of the first round at tackle, I want him to play tackle.
I'm also not sure how many of these guys could possibly play Left Tackle in the NFL. A lot of them seem to be Right Tackles. Thing is, we need both tackles (and guards). We have a couple guys who are pretty young. (Caleb Lomu from Utah is a redshirt sophomore)
With the exception of guys who are strictly centers or guys whose best position is center, the Browns really can just take the best available OLineman at least twice in the coming draft and they will fill a need.
If I'm taking a guy in the top half of the first round at tackle, I want him to play tackle.
Absolutely. I remember way back when we drafted Mingo. ballpeen came on and said, 'Geeze, he doesn't even play the position that we drafted him for.' - No screwing around in round 1.
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If I'm taking a guy in the top half of the first round at tackle, I want him to play tackle.
Absolutely. I remember way back when we drafted Mingo. ballpeen came on and said, 'Geeze, he doesn't even play the position that we drafted him for.' - No screwing around in round 1.
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So this is an interesting tackle class...
In some ways it's a deep class, I like the last three or four guys he listed that are probably 2nd-4th round guys, but I seem to hear "Well this guy might actually slide inside and play guard" about a few of the higher rated guys.
If I'm taking a guy in the top half of the first round at tackle, I want him to play tackle.
I'm also not sure how many of these guys could possibly play Left Tackle in the NFL. A lot of them seem to be Right Tackles. Thing is, we need both tackles (and guards). We have a couple guys who are pretty young. (Caleb Lomu from Utah is a redshirt sophomore)
With the exception of guys who are strictly centers or guys whose best position is center, the Browns really can just take the best available OLineman at least twice in the coming draft and they will fill a need.
So this is an interesting tackle class...
In some ways it's a deep class, I like the last three or four guys he listed that are probably 2nd-4th round guys, but I seem to hear "Well this guy might actually slide inside and play guard" about a few of the higher rated guys.
If I'm taking a guy in the top half of the first round at tackle, I want him to play tackle.
I'm also not sure how many of these guys could possibly play Left Tackle in the NFL. A lot of them seem to be Right Tackles. Thing is, we need both tackles (and guards). We have a couple guys who are pretty young. (Caleb Lomu from Utah is a redshirt sophomore)
With the exception of guys who are strictly centers or guys whose best position is center, the Browns really can just take the best available OLineman at least twice in the coming draft and they will fill a need.
I hear ya. It's not much different than if you need to draft a QB - it shouldn't take 2 draft picks to land 1 adult sized QB.
To your point, we drafted OT/LT Joel Bitonio from Nevada and he's frequented Pro Bowls at LG for the Browns. He came in the 2nd round not to be confused with upper 1st round and it was a great pick to tag team with Joe Thomas on the blind side (even though some of the QBs had 2 blind sides). I think he's ready to retire when last year was 3-14 and this year is another dumpster fire. The guy who replaces him is another 2nd round draft pick we got from the Bears - Teven Jenkins (Oklahoma State). I think our former Buckeye Luke Wypler will finally get a chance to start at Guard or Center next year.
This doesn't seem like a deep/strong OT draft at this point - but what do we really know just yet? We've had good Guards (maybe not as good as their younger version); but it's not enough to overcome the lack of protection on the edges against GREAT athletes while we lack playbook design and talented WRs that get open immediately (to help the situation). Just add 2 tablespoons of inexperience at QB and watching this passing game ain't much fun...
We learned a 32 year old journeyman like Cornelius Lucas is nothing more than why bother?
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Utah Right Tackle - Spencer Fano Video:
The ONLY disappointing thing about him is that he plays RIGHT Tackle; and I woulda known that if I ever kept myself awake after 10 pm. What I ADORE is he gets to the part of the defender he needs to be at very quickly. 1st to contact in tandem with 1st to position . NEXT, he stays with his blocks until the play is over - just watch the video and enjoy it jumping off the screen at us.
The one thing he needs to work on is the tendency for his pad height to get too high at times. You'll see it on plays when it looks like his engine is slowing down prematurely because he got too tall too quickly (with his pad height) which removes all help from his lower torso = leverage lost. Happens a lot more frequently when players get fatigued later in the game. Very correctable - especially if the tackle is well conditioned (unlike Wills & Jones). I've seen 2 different wing spans listed for him but the most common one is 34 inches. He's got plenty of time to get his playing weight up from 305. He'll be fine...
I know this is only 1 video so take what I'm about to say with a grain of salt. I'm not so sure Spencer Fano can't play LT. Then again, if we still have the little lefty at QB - then RT will be on his blind side. If you play OL long enough, you usually have experience in at least 1-2 spots on either or both sides of the Center. Today has far more emphasis on the passing game so combatting athletes like Myles Garrett, Aidan Hutchinson, Micah Parsons, and either Bosa on the edge requires the right Warrior with naughty intentions to protect the franchise QB. Our FO doesn't even think OT is important; but they have comfortable tenure in spite of it.
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Utah Right Tackle - Spencer Fano Video:
The ONLY disappointing thing about him is that he plays RIGHT Tackle; and I woulda known that if I ever kept myself awake after 10 pm. What I ADORE is he gets to the part of the defender he needs to be at very quickly. 1st to contact in tandem with 1st to position . NEXT, he stays with his blocks until the play is over - just watch the video and enjoy it jumping off the screen at us.
The one thing he needs to work on is the tendency for his pad height to get too high at times. You'll see it on plays when it looks like his engine is slowing down prematurely because he got too tall too quickly (with his pad height) which removes all help from his lower torso = leverage lost. Happens a lot more frequently when players get fatigued later in the game. Very correctable - especially if the tackle is well conditioned (unlike Wills & Jones). I've seen 2 different wing spans listed for him but the most common one is 34 inches. He's got plenty of time to get his playing weight up from 305. He'll be fine...
I know this is only 1 video so take what I'm about to say with a grain of salt. I'm not so sure Spencer Fano can't play LT. Then again, if we still have the little lefty at QB - then RT will be on his blind side. If you play OL long enough, you usually have experience in at least 1-2 spots on either or both sides of the Center. Today has far more emphasis on the passing game so combatting athletes like Myles Garrett, Aidan Hutchinson, Micah Parsons, and either Bosa on the edge requires the right Warrior with naughty intentions to protect the franchise QB. Our FO doesn't even think OT is important; but they have comfortable tenure in spite of it.
Utah Right Tackle - Spencer Fano Video:
The ONLY disappointing thing about him is that he plays RIGHT Tackle;
Considering how bad the situation is at both tackle spots, if he's the best at his position, it's a welcomed pick.
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Here's another video of Spencer Fano. Everything I mentioned about his previous video can also be seen here. One thing I didn't clarify when I shared the other video is when he keeps his base/feet slightly wider than shoulder width apart - it's a text book lesson on how to prevent an offensive lineman from over-extending. When you hit the 5 man sleds in practice with a coach or 2 riding it - guys tend to bring their feet closer together in order to push their side faster than the guys on the other end. Problem is that habit while advantageous against a stationary sled pad works against the blocker facing a live opponent who can use the blocker's weight against him to toss him to either side during the over-extension. Anyway, this kid impresses me. He's got clean up his consistency a little with his base; but I love his start to every block at the point of attack.
I wouldn't mind seeing TJ Watt sentenced to 6 hours of this guy in 2026.
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Considering how bad the situation is at both tackle spots, if he's the best at his position, it's a welcomed pick.
a top 10 pick for sure maybe top 5, either way the way the draft is looking I would take him with our top pick, I believe i said this somewhere else here
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So this is an interesting tackle class...
In some ways it's a deep class, I like the last three or four guys he listed that are probably 2nd-4th round guys, but I seem to hear "Well this guy might actually slide inside and play guard" about a few of the higher rated guys.
If I'm taking a guy in the top half of the first round at tackle, I want him to play tackle.
I'm also not sure how many of these guys could possibly play Left Tackle in the NFL. A lot of them seem to be Right Tackles. Thing is, we need both tackles (and guards). We have a couple guys who are pretty young. (Caleb Lomu from Utah is a redshirt sophomore)
With the exception of guys who are strictly centers or guys whose best position is center, the Browns really can just take the best available OLineman at least twice in the coming draft and they will fill a need.
I hear ya. It's not much different than if you need to draft a QB - it shouldn't take 2 draft picks to land 1 adult sized QB.
To your point, we drafted OT/LT Joel Bitonio from Nevada and he's frequented Pro Bowls at LG for the Browns. He came in the 2nd round not to be confused with upper 1st round and it was a great pick to tag team with Joe Thomas on the blind side (even though some of the QBs had 2 blind sides). I think he's ready to retire when last year was 3-14 and this year is another dumpster fire. The guy who replaces him is another 2nd round draft pick we got from the Bears - Teven Jenkins (Oklahoma State). I think our former Buckeye Luke Wypler will finally get a chance to start at Guard or Center next year.
This doesn't seem like a deep/strong OT draft at this point - but what do we really know just yet? We've had good Guards (maybe not as good as their younger version); but it's not enough to overcome the lack of protection on the edges against GREAT athletes while we lack playbook design and talented WRs that get open immediately (to help the situation). Just add 2 tablespoons of inexperience at QB and watching this passing game ain't much fun...
We learned a 32 year old journeyman like Cornelius Lucas is nothing more than why bother?
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Here's Utah Left Tackle Caleb Lomu who is just a red shirt Sophomore so this is film of him as a Freshman. I think he's entering the draft. There's definitely stuff to clean up but this kid has some very good lateral movement. If we get a good OL Coach working with him - Hearsay indicates Bill Callahan would be willing to come back. Lomu is probably a round 2/round 3 prospect if I had to guess. EDIT: He's also very good at trapping/pulling to the other side of Center. Gets there on time spotting the right guy to hit/seal and can continue on down the field when he can.
He's Fano's teammate & we'd definitely have a "Two Utes" situation on our OL...
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Going into Week 12, the Browns’ offensive line was ranked by (PFF) at #30.
Here are the individual Browns offensive line PFF grades at this point in the 2025 season:
Joel Bitonio – 71.3
Jack Conklin – 57.3
Teven Jenkins – 86.5
Dawand Jones – 32.8
KT Leveston – 44.7
Cornelius Lucas – 42.9
Ethan Pocic – 60.7
Cam Robinson – 44.5
Wyatt Teller – 61.7
Luke Wypler – 30.3
Zak Zinter – not enough snaps
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