BEREA ― Spencer Fano has played in hundreds of football games in his life. He had never played in one at the NFL level, however, until the Browns' preseason opener Aug. 15 at the Chicago Bears. So how did the Browns rookie left tackle feel the experience went for him? "I thought it was a lot of fun," Fano said in the locker room after a 34-10 loss. "I feel like I was a little anxious coming into it, just had a little bit of nerves. And then it's just the same thing as really any level when you first play there. So you just need to play that first snap and you'll realize that you're fine and it's not what you built it up to be in your head. And that's kind of what it was for me today." Subscribe to Browns Insider newsletter
Fano was selected with the No. 9 overall pick in April's draft with the full intention of him developing into the Browns' franchise left tackle. That was despite the fact the University of Utah product had only played left tackle for the first 11 games of his freshman season of college in 2023 before moving back to his more natural right tackle spot. The Browns, though, have made sure Fano has been building up the reps at left tackle. He's played there exclusively during the offseason program and training camp, and he played there the entire first half against Chicago. Browns coach Todd Monken said after the game the reason for that was to keep Fano in as long as Deshaun Watson, who started at quarterback, was in the game. That meant getting 33 game snaps, which accounted for exactly 50% of the Browns' offensive snaps against the Bears. "I didn't even know that," Fano said. "That's so freaking cool. That's so freaking cool. And it just, yeah, I know it's my job to protect him and to make sure that he's comfortable in that pocket and I'm just going to get better every day to make sure that that happens." According to Pro Football Focus, Fano allowed two combined pressures. He had allowed a hit and a hurry in 18 passing snaps. Fano's most impressive play happened late in the first half. Bears defensive lineman Daniel Hardy came off the snap and engaged with Fano, then was picked up as he tried a half-leap as guard Jack Conley came in to help on the combo block. "Yeah, no, he did good," Browns defensive end Jared Verse, a frequent Fano practice foil, said Aug. 17. "There's a couple things I want to talk to him off air and everything like that about fixing just a couple little small things. But for the most part, he dominated. I mean, he didn't up anything like that. And he showed exactly the reason that the Browns took him where they did. He's a great player." Fano was the only one of the Browns' starting offensive line to play beyond the second series. The rest of the first group featured Zion Johnson at left guard, Elgton Jenkins at center, Teven Jenkins at right guard and Tytus Howard at right tackle. That group played a combined 10 plays together in Chicago. The other 23 snaps Fano played was with a second group of Jack Conley at left guard, Luke Wypler at center, KT Leveston at right guard and Austin Barber at right tackle. "It was so cool," Fano said of playing with the first offensive line. "Yeah, I feel like that first play was just getting those nerves out, but then after that it was just the same as every day in practice of I'm next to Zion and we're about to do this double. It was just like every day in practice where we were working those drills on the field this time." Buy Cleveland Browns tickets There was an additional advantage for Fano to play all of the snaps he did in the preseason. Every snap he's gotten in practice has been against the Browns defense, meaning essentially all he's seeing is the fronts the Browns want to run. The Bears defense allowed Fano to adjust to a different front than he's been used to seeing. That was what Monken said he found most impressive for the rookie's first game. "I do think that all of the different looks that come up in a game basically post-snap," Monken said. "It's one thing to be pre-snap, it’s another one the defensive line starts to move. And when you're going against a different front, other than walkthroughs and prepping for the Bears, we hadn't gone against an odd front. "He'd never seen a — rarely has he seen a five-technique to his side and a Sam backer. So there's certain things that you've got to go through and keep learning and put it in your memory bank and be able to function." Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ. Sign up for Browns Insider newsletter at https://profile.beaconjournal.com/newsletters/browns-insider/ This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Spencer Fano's 1st NFL game? 'Just the same thing as really any level'