With injuries decimating their offensive line, the Cleveland Browns are acquiring OT Cam Robinson from the Houston Texans, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Per CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones, Cleveland is sending a 2027 sixth-round pick to the Texans in exchange for Robinson and a 2027 seventh-round pick.
Cleveland lost OT Dawand Jones for the season in Week 3, and OT Jack Conklin has been banged up. Cleveland started Cornelius Lucas at right tackle and KT Leveston at left tackle against the Detroit Lions in Week 4, and it didn’t go well. Lucas allowed nine pressures and three sacks in Cleveland’s loss to the Detroit Lions, and it’s likely he’ll return to the bench. Robinson would likely slot in at left tackle with Conklin returning to right tackle when he gets healthy.
The Steelers play the Browns twice the rest of the way, including their next game in Week 6, so they’ll likely see Robinson. He’s a former second-round pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars and was with the Jags from 2017-2024, before being dealt to the Minnesota Vikings at the trade deadline last year. He signed with Houston over the offseason, but was benched after starting Week 1 and playing 59 snaps.
Houston has been impressed enough with rookie Aireontae Ersery that it felt comfortable moving Robinson. Given Cleveland’s injuries and struggles along the offensive line, it makes sense the team would make a move to protect its quarterback. Joe Flacco is the Browns’ current starter, but at 1-3, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the team turned to rookie QB Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders at some point this season. If that’s the case, the Browns will really need to prioritize keeping their quarterback upright, and they made a proactive trade to acquire Robinson.
Robinson might not be a cure-all, but he’s a veteran with 102 starts under his belt. He struggled last year after he got to Minnesota though, as he allowed a 17% pressure rate in one-on-one situations, according to Next Gen Stats, per Yahoo! Sports’ Nate Tice.
Given Lucas’ struggles yesterday (albeit mostly against Aidan Hutchinson), the Browns decided they needed a change, and Robinson should be able to take over a starting job sooner rather than later for a team in desperate need of reliable offensive line play.
