CLEVELAND, Ohio -- At his Wednesday afternoon press conference, Browns general manager John Dorsey made it very clear: Tackles Greg Robinson and Chris Hubbard need to play better.
“I would like Greg to be more consistent," Dorsey said. "Just be more consistent as a football player.”
...So how is the offensive line doing so far this season? Let’s take a player-by-player look, then offer a grade:
Tackle
LT Greg Robinson (PFF grade: 67.8)
... Robinson is likely being benched for his lack of consistency.
There are times when he looks like the long-term answer and then other times he gets Baker Mayfield crushed or blows a run block assignment.
After the bye week, it sounds like Robinson will move to the bench. But with how inconsistently both tackles are playing, he could easily see the field again.
RT Chris Hubbard (PFF: 52.2)
Hubbard missed one game due to injury but his five starts make him a key part of this offensive line and his PFF grade indicates he is the second-weakest part of the unit. Where Hubbard is hurting Cleveland most is run blocking. PFF grades Hubbard as only a 40 overall run blocker, which explains why Nick Chubb is averaging a season-low 3.7 yards running off the right guard.
T Justin McCray (PFF: 64.1)
McCray started one game this season, a Week 3 loss to the Rams. He could see more opportunities after the bye week should Robinson be benched. In 121 snaps, McCray graded as a much better run blocker than pass blocker. In pass protection, he grades out at 53 overall compared to his 77.1 run block grade.
Guards
LG Joel Bitonio (PFF: 81.3)
RG Eric Kush (PFF: 48.0)
Kush wasn’t expected to start but won his training camp position battle against the recently traded Austin Corbett. Kush is not playing well, though. Pro Football Focus grades him as the lowest-performing Browns lineman. Of all 77 guards ranked by PFF, Kush is 65th.
Center
JC Tretter (PFF: 70.1)
Tretter joins Bitonio as the other bright spot at offensive line. Chubb is averaging 4.6 yards per carry running behind Tretter. Also, he ranks fifth among graded centers by PFF. Tretter is a team leader and, along with Bitonio, has only been flagged once.