Oregon receiver Troy Franklin was my Browns mock draft choice from beginning to end.
You must have an active subscription to read this story.
Click Here to subscribe Now!
Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
Let’s end the suspense right at the top. My pick for the Browns in mock draft 2.0 remains the same as mock 1.0. It’s Troy Franklin, the slender speedster receiver from Oregon.
I’ve been on him since the NFL Combine in February and stayed on him after the Browns traded for Denver wide receiver Jerry Jeudy.
At the Combine, Franklin measured a shade under 6-2 and weighed a slim 176 pounds. He did not have an exceptional combine and later said he was sick two days before arriving in Indianapolis.
He noted at the time, “I think my biggest challenge will be play strength. [There are] definitely grown men up there. I think I will just have to hit the weight room a little bit, you know. Put some work in, put some armor around me. That’s pretty much it, right there.”
Three weeks later at the Oregon Pro Day, Franklin weighed 183 – his preferred play weight – after putting "some work in." He also displayed his favorable catch radius and crisp route-running in a scripted workout designed to spotlight quarterback Bo Nix.
The Browns had a formal visit with Franklin at the Combine, revisited him at his Pro Day, and then invited him to Berea for a third visit.
Franklin has been projected anywhere from No. 52 to No. 68 by some of the leading draft prognosticators.
So I’ve stayed with him – a wire-to-wire finish for Oregon’s all-time leading receiver in my Browns mock drafts.
That’s surprising because I had 35 total changes from Mock 1.0 to 2.0 – 24 in the first round and 11 in the second round up to the Browns’ No. 54 spot.
I don’t project trades in my final mock. I expect at least six, so they could easily shake up everything and make this final mock a total mockery.
First round
1. Chicago (from Carolina)
QB Caleb Williams, USC
2. Washington
QB Jayden Daniels, Louisiana State
These are the only two picks anyone is sure of. The next three picks are all candidates to be traded.
3. New England
QB J.J. McCarthy, Michigan
4. Arizona
WR Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State
5. Los Angeles Chargers
OT Joe Alt, Notre Dame
6. New York Giants
WR Malik Nabers, LSU
7. Tennessee
TE Brock Bowers, Georgia
8. Atlanta
DE Dallas Turner, Alabama
9. Chicago
WR Rome Odunze, Washington
10. New York Jets
OL Troy Fautanu, Washington
11. Minnesota
QB Drake Maye, North Carolina
12. Denver
DT Byron Murphy, Texas
13. Las Vegas Raiders
QB Michael Penix, Washington
14. New Orleans
OT Olu Fashanu, Penn State
15. Indianapolis
CB Terrion Arnold, Alabama
16. Seattle
DE Laiatu Latu, UCLA
17. Jacksonville
CB Quinyon Mitchell, Toledo
18. Cincinnati
OT JC Latham, Alabama
Finishing touch to the Bengals’ three-year project to rebuild Joe Burrow’s pass protection.
19. Los Angeles Rams
DE Jared Verse, Florida State
20. Pittsburgh
C Graham Barton, Duke
They could choose from four positions on the offensive line, and Barton can play three of them.
21. Miami
DT Jer'Zhan Newton, Illinois
22. Philadelphia
OT Amarius Mims, Georgia
23. Minnesota (from Houston and Cleveland)
CB Cooper DeJean, Iowa
24. Dallas
OT Taliese Fuaga, Oregon State
25. Green Bay
OT Tyler Guyton, Oklahama
26. Tampa Bay
C Jackson Powers-Johnson, Oregon
27. Arizona (from Houston)
DE Chop Robinson, Penn State
28. Buffalo
WR Brian Thomas, Louisiana State
29. Detroit
CB Nate Wiggins, Clemson
30. Baltimore
OT Jordan Morgan, Arizona
Ravens complete an AFC North sweep of offensive linemen in first round.
31. San Francisco
WR Adonai Mitchell, Texas
32. Kansas City
WR Xavier Worthy, Texas
Second round
33. Carolina
WR Xavier Leggette, South Carolina
34. New England
OT Kingsley Suamataia, Brigham Young
35. Arizona
S Jaden Hicks, Washington State
36. Washington
WR Ladd McConkey, Georgia
37. Los Angeles Chargers
C Zach Frazier, West Virginia
38. Tennessee
DE Darius Robinson, Missouri
39. Carolina (from NY Giants)
CB T.J. Tampa, Iowa State
40. Washington (from Chicago)
CB Ennis Rakestraw Jr., Missouri
41. Green Bay (from NY Jets)
LB Junior Colson, Michigan
42. Houston (from Minnesota)
LB Edgerrin Cooper, Texas A&M
43. Atlanta
CB Kamari Lassiter, Georgia
44. Las Vegas
WR Keon Coleman, Florida State
45. New Orleans (from Denver)
WR Ricky Pearsall, Florida
46. Indianapolis
WR Roman Wilson, Michigan
47. New York Giants (from Seattle)
DB Mike Sainristil, Michigan
48. Jacksonville
S Javon Bullard, Georgia
49. Cincinnati
DT Kris Jenkins, Michigan
Bengals load up with an interior lineman to replace D.J. Reader.
50. Philadelphia (from New Orleans)
DT Michael Hall, Ohio State
51. Pittsburgh
WR Malachi Corley, Western Kentucky
Steelers continue to upgrade offense for new coordinator Arthur Smith.
52. Los Angeles Rams
QB Bo Nix, Oregon
53. Philadelphia
OG Cooper Beebe, Kansas State
54. Cleveland
WR Troy Franklin, Oregon
Lanky receiver fits immediately as fourth wideout in Ken Dorsey’s shotgun spread offense.