Browns have the most expensive offensive line in the NFL in 2021

The Browns get a good return on their considerable investment in the offensive line, too.

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The Cleveland Browns have one of the most respected offensive lines in the NFL entering the 2021 season. The unit, featuring bookend tackles Jack Conklin and Jedrick Wills, is the top-ranked line in many recent lists and rankings.

It’s a good return on a considerable investment from the Browns front office. No team will spend more salary cap room on the offensive line than Cleveland this year.

The Browns’ OL payroll is $53,426,790 per Spotrac’s latest update. That’s a little over $700,000 more than the Jacksonville Jaguars have in cap commitments for their O-line in 2021. The Indianapolis Colts are the only other team over $50 million.

Here’s how the cap hits for 2021 break down with the starting five:

RT Jack Conklin – $13 million

RG Wyatt Teller – $2.183 million

C JC Tretter – $11.075 million

LG Joel Bitonio – $10 million

LT Jedrick Wills – $4.478 million

Top reserve Chris Hubbard, who can play either guard or tackle, costs $4.96 million against the cap. No other linemen count more than $900,000 in 2021.

The league average is $34.8 million per offensive line, which puts the Browns almost $20 million over the midpoint. On the other end of the spectrum is the AFC North rival Steelers, who currently have 16 offensive linemen under contract for less than $17 million total salary in 2021.

All salary information is from Spotrac