No McCoy: Browns should feel OK, but not content with their IDL

The Cleveland Browns were in the hunt for one of the better interior defensive linemen over the past handful of years in Gerald McCoy. The winds were flying and hopes were high that the Browns could add McCoy and upgrade their interior defensive line unit. But, the former Tampa Bay Buc threw a curveball and turned down both the Browns and the Baltimore Ravens to sign with the Carolina Panthers. It was a surprising pick and disappointing one for Cleveland.

The reasoning behind McCoy’s choice seemed to be centered around two facts that only the Panthers could answer of the three finalists. The first was the proximity to his home in the South and the second reason was that the Panthers gave him the opportunity to face the Bucs twice this coming season. The reports on the money that was offered have been all over the place, but I am sure that was another part of the decision. So, the Browns had the resume and attractiveness to bring McCoy in, but McCoy decided to put more weight in the two facts that the Panthers had in their favor. So, where does this leave Cleveland?

First off, the Browns are not doomed by this missed opportunity. The addition would have been a great depth addition, but he does not mean the unit is in shambles. The Browns should feel OK after missing out on the Pro Bowl interior defensive lineman, but the team should not feel content.

The Browns have a really talented and young¹ starting duo in Larry Ogunjobi and Sheldon Richardson. But, the depth is where the team needs help. Coming into the offseason, the Browns needed a lot of help in the interior of the defensive line. Richardson’s addition was a huge aid to this unit, but the unit needs more than just one starter addition. Depth is a problem.

Last season, the Browns had only one quality interior defensive lineman and that was Ogunjobi. Trevon Coley and Brian Price were the only other interior defensive linemen who played a good amount of snaps for the Browns. And both of these two were not good, producing below average production. These two just did not do anything with their snaps to produce any sort of value. The lack of depth actually caused the Browns to overplay Ogunjobi, which in turn caused him to burn out over the course of the season. So, the Browns needed a lot of help coming into the offseason.

Richardson was a great start and has made the position much better. But, that is not saying much after a season with only one productive interior defensive lineman. The Browns needed to add multiple players to the line and McCoy would have been a home run addition to answer this problem and make this position an actual strength. But, here we are without McCoy and still looking for more depth.

Cleveland will get by and can work with what they have if they cannot find an available player to fit into their unit. But, the team should not rest on their laurels. The Browns could use some of their edge players to help with depth in the interior, but the Cleveland should try to get at least one primary interior defensive lineman to add to this unit.

Adding a productive player helps in a number of ways. Obviously, first of all, it gives the Browns another rotational option to produce in the interior. But, an addition also helps his fellow interior linemen. Another body will limit the over-usage of Richardson and Ogunjobi, allowing them to stay fresh throughout the season.

So, who could the Browns target to help strengthen this unit and answer the depth issues? Well, the Browns could go in a number of routes. The team could go with players who are role players who help shore up a certain area. Corey Liuget and Bennie Logan would be two options who could be run stuffing interior defenders, while David Irving could be added as a pass rushing specialist. But, the Browns could go with risk/reward type player in Muhammad Wilkerson. Wilkerson is the most talented interior defensive lineman on the market, but he comes with questions on and off the field. If the Browns are comfortable with those questions, the team could take a gamble and hit on a really talented player.

So, the Browns interior defensive line comes down to this after missing out on McCoy. The position is in a much better spot with the addition of Richardson. But, the unit is not perfect and needs more depth in a big way. The team should feel OK about the unit, but not content with the current depth chart at the position.

1. Well half young. Young-ish. [↩]