Doing just what they needed to, the Cleveland Browns made a move that made too much sense yesterday.

With the signing of DT Shelby Harris, the Browns filled a major need that they’ve had for quite some time.

Cleveland had the worst group of defensive tackles in the NFL last year and you can’t sugarcoat that.

The arrival of Harris tops off a complete overhaul of the defensive line alongside one of the game’s best in DE Myles Garrett. Harris is set to play alongside DT Dalvin Tomlinson, another prized acquisition for the Browns this past offseason.

Getting Harris comes to Cleveland has a ripple effect in terms of the benefits it offers.

Browns now have two proven starters

As mentioned, Harris will be starting alongside Tomlinson. Prior to signing Harris, the Browns had Jordan Elliott as the other listed starting defensive tackle. Elliott can offer some things as an interior pass rusher, but he simply was not good at stopping the run.

Now, Elliott can be pushed to a depth role, or perhaps Jim Schwartz gets creative and throws three interior players out in some sure running downs. There are endless legit possibilities of what Cleveland’s new defensive coordinator can choose to do. It’s known that he’s going to want to play man defense and he’s said he is going to want to bring five after the quarterback at times.

Cleveland now has improved depth with Elliott pushed down the chart and there are others that will battle it out for the final spots. Rookie Siaki Ika, Maurice Hurst, Trysten Hill, and Tommy Togiai are all legit contenders for the back end of the room.

Help for the linebackers

Cleveland’s linebackers were bruised and battered last year and some of that had to do with the fact that they had minimal help in front of them. Guards were able to get to the next level and get hands on the backers often, it was a recipe for disaster.

Anthony Walker Jr. was still playing the best ball of his career two games into the season when he suffered a season-ending injury. On the other hand, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah wasn’t as good but it’s a different situation with him.

JOK is a guy that needs to be able to fly around space and attack where the ball is getting to. He’s a bit smaller of a linebacker (though he did add some weight) and that allows offensive linemen to manhandle him when they’re able to get a hand on him. With better defensive tackle play, the Notre Dame product is going to have a better time with reading and reacting. Owusu-Koramoah certainly has to be happy with what the Browns have done in front of him.

Sione Takitaki is your strong side linebacker and he’s obsidian enough to where this didn’t affect him as much. But he too went down with an injury last season. The improved tackle play is going to be very beneficial for the group as a collective.

Time for Siaki Ika to develop

If a defensive tackle went down prior to the signing of Harris, there was a legit chance that Cleveland was going to have to throw their rookie defensive tackle into the fire. It is a recipe for disaster in most cases unless you’re a high-end defensive tackle that is ready to play right away.

Many defensive tackles come into the NFL looking to rely on strength and it simply isn’t as effective against bigger, stronger players than they played against in college. Refining your game and becoming more comfortable with your technique is always a safe bet.

Ika is going to be a run-stopper with the upside of getting after the quarterback if the pocket collapses. He’s by no means fast out of the middle, but he should have some pressure with his ability to move a player into the lap of the quarterback.

With Harris and Tomlinson starting and Elliott likely the third guy, Ika can come into the game in certain packages that best fit him. Overall, he’s looking to the team’s No. 4 defensive tackle starting out. That is a much better recipe for success than it could have been.

After banging the table for a couple of months now that the Browns have to add one more defensive tackle, they finally did it. The plus side of it should show up throughout the defense as a whole. Schwartz has to be a happy guy in Northeast Ohio right now. 

Browns make final splash move before the season with latest signing

It made too much sense for the Browns to bring in this defensive lineman.

Featured image via Michael Chow  and Kirby Lee USA TODAY-Sports.