The NFL draft for the Browns once again is like the Friday after Thanksgiving — plenty of leftovers to choose from even if they weren’t invited to the original feast.
Barring a trade to move up or down, the Browns will make their first pick during the draft on April 26 when they are on the clock with the 54th overall selection — the 22nd pick in the second round. They did not have a pick in the first round on April 25 because they traded it to the Houston Texans in March 2022 as part of the package to acquire Deshaun Watson. The Browns also sent their first-round picks in 2022 and 2023 to Houston in the Watson trade.
The second and third rounds will be conducted on April 26 beginning at 7 p.m. in Detroit. It will be televised on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network. The draft will conclude with rounds 4-7 beginning at noon April 27 with ABC, ESPN and NFL Network again televising the event.
Browns general manager Andrew Berry could do just about anything but pick a quarterback, punter or kicker with the 54th pick and it would not be a surprise. Wide receiver, any position on the offensive line, linebacker, edge rusher, defensive tackle — they all make sense. What would be a surprise would be Berry going two days without drafting a cornerback.
Berry has his draft board set, but he is prepared to adjust it as players get plucked by other teams.
“It probably starts Thursday night where you kind of restrategize a little bit based on what’s happened on Thursday,” Berry said last week during a pre-draft news conference. “But in reality, you probably get a more narrow focus — call it 10 picks out, because that’s when really players become more in striking distance.”
The Browns have six picks in all — pick 54, pick 85 (third round), pick 156 (fifth round), pick 206 (sixth round) plus picks 227 and 243 (seventh round). Berry said not having a first-round pick does not diminish the excitement about the opportunity to make the Browns better with judicious selections with the picks he does have.
“Not at all,” Berry said. “I understand that (perception) from an external perspective because those are usually the most well-recognized prospects coming into the draft, but we’re excited about maximizing the group of players that we can acquire during the weekend. There’s still a number of good players up and down the draft board.”
The Panthers and Texans are also without first-round picks because of prior trades. The Browns will be the last team to make a selection, again barring a trade, because Carolina has the first pick in the second round and Houston has the 10th. Berry, who rarely sits there waiting for the Browns’ turn to pick, didn’t rule out making a trade, but he admitted having only two picks in the top 155 makes dealing more challenging.
“It’s obviously less flexible than if you have your full slate of picks,” Berry said. “But that doesn’t mean that you can’t manage your resources creatively, whether it’s increase the volume or increase the quality. So, a large part of it will depend on what’s available and what dance partners we may or may not have.”
NFL.com scout Lance Zeirlein lists the various positions in the draft, from strongest to weakest, in this order: Offensive tackles, wide receivers, quarterbacks, edge defender, cornerbacks and interior defensive linemen (tied for fifth), interior offensive linemen, running backs and tight ends tied for eighth), safeties and linebackers last.
Zierlein projects only four linebackers in the draft are good enough to be future starters — Junior Colson of Michigan, Edgerrin Cooper of Texas A&M, Payton Wilson of North Carolina State and Jeremiah Trotter of Clemson — and he projects none of the four will be a top-40 pick. That could bode well for the Browns.
The Browns could use some stability at linebacker. Devin Bush signed a one-year deal in March. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah is in his contract year. Jordan Hicks is on a two-year contract. Mohamoud Diabate is a solid special teamer and Tony Fields is good in spot duty.
Wilson has some injury history, but he might prove to be a steal at 54. Any of the four linebackers would make that position better for the Browns.
