Jack Conklin has successfully turned the concept of an offensive lineman into a high-stakes guessing game involving orthopedic surgeons and salary cap gymnastics. Watching him attempt to reclaim his starting spot is a bit like waiting for a vintage printer to stop jamming; you know it is supposed to work, but you are mostly just waiting for the next error code. Cleveland front office executives surely wake up in a cold sweat dreaming about the guaranteed money sitting on the injury report.

The obsession with keeping him in the lineup ignores the reality that his knees have the structural integrity of a wet paper towel at this stage of his career. - Drafted 8th overall in 2016 by the Tennessee Titans - Signed a massive four-year contract with Cleveland in 2020 - Repeatedly sidelined by torn ligaments and recovery setbacks - Represents a significant portion of the team's dead cap space The narrative surrounding his return shifts every season with the same tired optimism that usually precedes a catastrophic week three setback. Fans are expected to buy into the comeback tour, ignoring the mountain of medical files that suggest the odometer has simply run out of clicks.

If the goal of the organization is to build a championship roster, they have a strange way of prioritizing players who spend the majority of the season in street clothes. Whether he actually makes it through a full training camp without an mysterious setback remains the million-dollar question for the coaching staff. Is it time to admit that some investments are just expensive tax write-offs masquerading as starters?

Or are we going to pretend that the next miraculous recovery is right around the corner until the final whistle blows on his career?