Who is Starting at Left Tackle on Sunday? Here’s Everything You Need to Know.
BEREA, Ohio – The Browns are four days away from their season opener at newly minted Huntington Bank Field against the Dallas Cowboys. But the Browns still have one major question going into week 1: Who is protecting Deshaun Watson’s blindside?
One of the biggest questions going into camp was when we would see right tackle Jack Conklin and left tackle Jedrick Wills back at practice after both sustained season-ending knee injuries last year.
Well, it may have taken longer than expected but as of today we finally saw both Wills and Conklin back practice, and have at least some clarity on who will get the start on Sunday.
Wills confirmed Wednesday that he will not be starting at left tackle Sunday despite making his way back to the practice field. While neither Coach Kevin Stefanski nor Wills confirmed that he will be completely inactive Sunday, there is a good chance that Browns fans will have to wait at least another week to see Wills in action.
Surely then we would see Conklin at left tackle, right?
“Yeah, again, we’ll worry about today, Wednesday.” Said Head Coach Kevin Stefanski when asked if Jack Conklin was ready to go at left tackle. “He’s worked very, very hard. And I know I’ve said that, but I’ve seen him in this building at all hours, through every month here, getting his body back ready. I think he looks good, but we’ll worry about today and see how he gets out of today.”
Jack Conklin played left tackle during his college days at Michigan State but has never taken a snap at left tackle in his NFL career.
“You know it's different, but I did it in college,” Conklin said when asked how difficult it is to transition from right to left. “It’s just getting the mentality mostly (and) just verbiage; the thought of everything one way and it’s just flipping it in your head.”
Despite Conklin’s comfortability with going from right back to left, the Browns are seemingly unwilling to commit to him as a starter for Sunday. Now, this could just be gamesmanship on the part of Kevin Stefanski, or the Browns could be looking at another option if they do not believe that Conklin is fully ready to go.
James Hudson was a big piece for the Browns after Wills and Conklin suffered injuries. Hudson provided the team with much-needed depth at the tackle position and proved to be an asset for the O-Line room.
Hudson has also taken on an expanded role this offseason working with the first team during camp while Wills and Conklin were sidelined.
“I’m not sure,” Hudson said when asked if he is expecting to play Sunday “I’m just going through the week seeing how the guys feel and taking It from there.”
The holdup here could be with Conklin and if he is game ready for Sunday, and with Conklin showing up on the injury report Wednesday and the Browns failing to commit to a starter, I would not be shocked if Hudson gets the start at LT.