CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – All Andrew Berry could do Thursday night was watch.
With no ammunition to do anything in the opening round of the NFL Draft for a third straight year, Berry will go to work Friday night to multiply picks and build developmental depth.
Here’s our top Brownie Bites as Day 2 of the Draft opens Friday night.
Paid in full – When the Texans make the 123 rd overall pick in round four Saturday afternoon, the tab for Deshaun Watson will be paid in full. Watson cost the Browns six picks – including three first rounders – and a fully guaranteed $230 million contract in March 2022. The Texans traded the third and final first rounder in March to Minnesota, who dealt the pick to Jacksonville Thursday night. Watson has played just 12 games since the trade due to an 11-game suspension in 2022 following allegations of sexual misconduct as a member of the Texans and last season a broken glenoid in his right shoulder ended 2023 for him. Houston has built a contender while the Browns, who won 11 games and suffered a Wild Card blowout loss to Houston, are hopeful they’ll finally begin to see dividends from their investment this season.
The picks – The Browns enter Round 2 Friday night with six selections over the final six rounds – No. 54 overall in the second round, No. 85 overall in Round 3, No. 156 overall in the fifth round, No. 206 overall in the sixth round and Nos. 227 and 243 overall in the seventh round.
Third time’s a charm – Assuming Berry stands pat and uses the selection, this would be the third No. 54 overall pick in team history. In 1964 the Browns selected guard Dan Shackleford and in 1980 they took defensive end Cleveland Crosby.
Let’s make a deal – Berry loves wheeling and dealing during the draft, and he has traded their second round pick the last two years. Berry’s previous second-round selections netted safety Grant Delpit in 2020 and linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah in 2021. Although Berry’s flexibility to move up on day two is limited, moving down from 54 would allow him to stock extra picks.
The priorities – Berry said last week most of his focus in this year’s draft will be to build depth, not just for this year’s team but for future seasons. That means Berry will eye young players the team can develop to fill roles in the years to come and not necessarily for 2024. Receiver seems to be the consensus top priority according to pundits. Berry has traded for their top three wideouts in recent years – Amari Cooper, Elijah Moore and Jerry Jeudy and spent third round draft picks on David Bell and Cedric Tillman. Cooper and Moore are in the final years of their contracts while Bell and Tillman remain unproven so drafting yet another makes sense. The Browns also could use developmental depth at defensive tackle and linebacker. Interior offensive linemen and tight ends should also be on Berry’s radar.
Round 1 recap – Half of the first 12 picks were quarterbacks, including the first three selections – Caleb Williams of USC to Chicago, LSU’s Jayden Daniels to Washington and North Carolina’s Drake Maye to New England. After giving Kirk Cousins $100 million this offseason, the Falcons didn’t get him a weapon with the eighth overall pick, instead Atlanta picked his replacement – Washington’s Michael Pennix Jr. Minnesota selected Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy 10 th overall and Bo Nix of Oregon is off to Denver with the 12 th pick. Marvin Harrison Jr. might help resurrect Kyler Murray with the Cardinals in Arizona. The Ohio State star wideout was the first non-QB to come off the board at No. 4 overall, and rightfully so. Jim Harbaugh selected Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt to help keep his franchise Qb, Justin Herbert, upright.
AFC North roundup – Eight offensive tackles were selected in the opening round and two of them landed within the division. Cincinnati took Georgia’s Amarius Mims 18 th overall and two picks later the Steelers selected Washington’s Troy Fautanu. The Ravens shored up their secondary with Clemson corner Nate Wiggins with the 30 th pick.
Most Popular
Comments / 0