Browns would be foolish to trade Zeitler
A comment made by Mark Kay Cabot on the radio suggests the Browns may trade Kevin Zeitler in order to play Austin Corbett. If it is true, doing so would be incredibly foolish.
Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com appeared on 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland Tuesday and made a comment in regards to the Browns roster. Cabot suggested that the Browns could trade Kevin Zeitler in order to play second round pick Austin Corbett. While this may just be speculation, if it were to come true it would be a mistake.
It is understandable to want to give their second round pick playing time. Nobody wants a pick they made to be considered a mistake. However trading a proven commodity for an unknown with the team on the upswing is an unwise decision. Pro Football Focus ranked Kevin Zeitler as the sixth-best guard with a grade of above average. Let’s think about that for a second. Only five guards in the entire league performed better than Zeitler according to PFF’s standards. Simply suggesting that trading one of the best guards in the league just to play Corbett could produce negative results.
Austin Corbett appeared in 11 games as a rookie. There was a stretch where Corbett missed some time due to injury, but Corbett recovered and was able to participate in the final two games of the season. Not much is known about what exactly Corbett is capable of at the NFL level. Corbett only participated in a handful of plays and did not get an extensive look whatsoever.
If Cleveland did want to move on from Zeitler, after next season would be a better option. There is an out in Zeitler’s contract after the year is up and it would allow Corbett some time to grow as an NFL player while providing the team with a fallback plan in case of injury. Corbett could eventually be the answer at either guard position, but with team poised for a playoff run and with high aspirations, making a major change on the offensive line could be a recipe for disaster. The Browns are not hurting for money or lack cap space. Holding on to Zeitler (for now) is a better option than trading him at this moment in time.
