Cleveland Browns select Zak Zinter in third round of 2024 NFL Draft

The Cleveland Browns have selected former Michigan offensive lineman Zak Zinter in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft, taking him with the no. 85 overall selection.

Zinter was the key piece to a strong Michigan offensive line this past season, but suffering a broken tibia and fibula in the win over Ohio State kept him from participating in the Wolverines’ College Football Playoff run.

Despite not playing in the final three games of the Wolverines’ season, Zinter earned unanimous First-Team All-American honors by the Associated Press. He was also given First-team All-Big Ten Conference honors and was a Finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy. Not to mention he was a captain on this past year’s squad.

Upon his return, however, the 6-foot-6, 322-pound lineman should provide a lot of upside and versatility at the next level.

Prior to enrolling at Michigan, Zinter was a four-star prospect and the No. 294 overall recruit in the 2020 recruiting class, according to the On3 Industry Rankings, a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services. He also checked in as the No. 29 offensive tackle in the class and the No. 3 overall player in the state of Massachusetts, hailing from North Andover (MA) Buckingham Browne & Nichols School.

What experts are saying about Zak Zinter

NFL analyst Lance Zierlein compared Zinter to Detroit Lions guard Graham Glasgow regarding how the former Wolverines’ talent will translate to the professional ranks.

“Zinter enters the league with NFL size, toughness and technique. He is an average athlete in short spaces but is very capable of climbing to the second level with good angles and making hits on short pulls. He can be stood up and neutralized by two-gapping pluggers but is rarely beaten soundly. His pass protection will be average by NFL standards. Active rushers will give him more issues than you might like. Zinter’s draft stock might be hindered by the recovery from his injury, but the tape suggests he’s a starter on the next level.”

Zierlein lists Zinter’s strengths as having strong physical attributes, takes smart angles and can climb to block defenders at the second level, stays secured in his blocks, has strong hands and driving feet, can hold his ground against run-stoppers and can reset hands to maintain position mid-block.

For his weaknesses, Zierlein believes that — aside from his injuries and subsequent recovery — Zinter can work on his momentum when driving blocks off the snap, stopping two-gappers trying to separate from him, has below-averaged quickness in short-area pass protection and can have trouble making successful recoveries when beaten off the snap.