Cleveland Browns 2024 training camp position group preview: Guards
BEREA — Training camp is fast approaching for the Browns.
Rookies are scheduled to report on July 22, with the veterans coming in the next day. The Browns will then head to the Greenbrier in West Virginia on July 25 for the first of seven practices over nine days there before returning to Berea for the remainder of camp.
Leading up to the start of camp, each Browns position group is getting its moment in the spotlight. Today, the guards take center stage.
For the previous position group previews, look here:
Here's a look at the Browns guards heading into training camp.
On the Cleveland Browns roster: Guards
Joel Bitonio, Wyatt Teller, Michael Dunn, Zak Zinter, Wyatt Davis, Germain Ifedi, Javion Cohen
Projected starters: Joel Bitonio (left) and Wyatt Teller (right)
This could be chiseled into granite. You're talking about two of the premier guards in the league right now and arguably the best guard tandem currently going. Bitonio's 2023 season was a little more disappointing than normal, if only because a bye-week arthroscopic knee surgery cost him his 102-game regular-season start streak and then a back issue late in the regular season and a high ankle sprain in the playoff game added to the frustrations. Still, he earned yet another Pro Bowl spot and announced himself good to go last month. Teller, meanwhile, ended up with his third consecutive Pro Bowl appearance after playing a career-high 1,187 offensive snaps, which was 96% of the Browns' snaps last season. It was only the second time he cleared 1,000 offensive snaps in his career, with the other being when he played all 1,107 snaps in the 2021 season.
One to watch: Zak Zinter
The Browns may have gotten a bargain of sorts in the third round because of the University of Michigan standout's leg injury that prevented him from working out for teams, thus likely impacting his draft stock. Zinter, who had a steel rod placed in his leg, was a full participant in both the OTAs and minicamp. The Browns obviously see him as someone who could eventually step into the shoes of either Bitonio or Teller whenever their time in Cleveland is over. For now, it may be about finding ways to get reps as a depth piece inside.
Potential training camp battle: Michael Dunn and Zak Zinter (and maybe others) as top interior backup
Dunn has done a fantastic job of carving out a role since originally signing with the Browns in 2020. He's played in 42 games with seven starts, one of those starts for Bitonio in a wild card game against the Pittsburgh Steelers in January 2021. Dunn has been a stalwart in the Browns' short-yardage/goal line packages. Still, it's hard not to see Zinter as a possible threat to take some of Dunn's snaps, especially with the former signed to a four-year rookie deal compared to the latter's latest one-year contract. There are potentially others who could be trying to get into that mix as well, including the former Ohio State Buckeye Davis. Dunn and Zinter seem like the top two options, right now, for that role.
Impact of injuries entering training camp
Bitonio left the locker room the day after the wild card loss to the Houston Texans wearing a walking boot due to a high ankle sprain sustained in the loss. However, talking at the team's charity golf outing in June, he reported he was feeling fine and ready to go. Of course, the veteran was not a participant in on-field drills during minicamp and will receive plenty of rest days throughout the course of camp.
Zinter's injury, suffered when now-teammate Michael Hall Jr. fell into his leg during Michigan's win over Ohio State last November, has fully healed. There did not appear to be any setbacks during his time in the Browns offseason program.
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns training camp preview: Joel Bitonio and guards
