The Cleveland Browns announced Monday that they have placed their transition tag on center Alex Mack instead of using the franchise tag on him.

The transition tag allows any NFL team to make an offer to Mack in free agency but gives the Browns the opportunity to match any offer within five days of the offer being made, if he signs with another team the Browns will receive two first-round picks from the team that signed him, according to CBS Sports.

The transition tag gives Mack $10 million from the Browns in 2014 while the franchise tag would have costed the Browns $11.9 million to keep their Pro Bowl center in Cleveland for at least one more year, NFL.com reports.

Mack has been a very effective center for the Browns in his five year career. He has made two Pro Bowls and was considered as one of the best centers in the NFL in the 2013 season. NFL.com reports that ProFootballFocus.com ranked Mack as the fourth-best player in his position in the NFL in 2013.

Mack is a great young center and the Browns should try everything they can to keep him in a Browns uniform for many more years to come.

Image: Wikimedia Commons.