The Browns have managed to win eight games despite using four different starting quarterbacks, but the team’s success has also come about with numerous injuries along the offensive line. The team has encountered more unwanted news on that front. 
[RELATED: Joe Flacco To Remain Browns’ Starting QB]
Rookie tackle Dawand Jones suffered a knee injury in practice before Cleveland’s Week 14 game. He will require season-ending surgery as a result, head coach Kevin Stefanski said on Monday (via Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com). The procedure will put an end to an impressive first pro season and leave the team even thinner at the offensive tackle spots.
Starter Jack Conklin suffered an ACL tear in Week 1, leaving a vacancy at the right tackle position. That immediately thrust Jones into the lineup, and he held down a starting role ever since. The Ohio State alum showed improvement as the season progressed, earning impressive PFF marks in pass protection in particular. Jones sat 29th out of 83 tackles in that regard entering Week 14, and he drew an overall mark of 64.7.
With the 22-year-old unavailable for Sunday’s contest, the Browns turned to 2021 fourth-rounder James Hudson at RT. He has now logged 10 starts across his 41 games with Cleveland, and he will likely be counted on as a first-teamer for the remainder of the season. The loss of Conklin, and now Jones, is of course compounded by the fact that left tackle Jedrick Wills remains on injured reserve, having been out since November.
Without the latter in the lineup, Cleveland has relied on Geron Christian to man the blindside. The 27-year-old journeyman has started five games since his arrival with the Browns, and he will remain a key member of the Browns’ offense as their playoff push continues. Siting at 8-5 despite having a severely shorthanded offense, Cleveland will now have to move forward with another replacement starter along the O-line.
Some games haven’t been pretty and obviously the game plans have not been perfect but the injuries on offense and defense and the soap opera at QB this year and the number of QBs who have started for this team to be 8-5 and have had some dominating wins and also beat the 49ers if Stefamski leads this team to the playoffs and isn’t under strong consideration for coach of the year it’s a shame. Again it’s hasn’t always been pretty and some things are questionable but he seems to put guys in the right place and situation for the most to part to have success. I am definitely a Stefanski guy and don’t think there should be any talk of moving on from him anytime soon.