The Browns shouldn't risk losing Cam Ward to another team. They should trade up to No. 1 to secure their next franchise QB hopeful. (TheLandOnDemand)
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
Takeaways from a week at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis …
1. Don’t sleep on the No. 2 pick.
In 2016, Tennessee held the No. 1 spot in the draft and the Browns held No. 2 – same as this year.
There were two quarterbacks vying for the top two spots – same as this year.
The Browns assuredly wanted one of them – same as this year.
Now, the Browns have to prevent repeating what eventually happened in 2016.
At the time, Andrew Berry was VP of player personnel under EVP Sashi Brown. After their collaborative quarterback evaluation process, which included chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta and coach Hue Jackson, the Browns pegged Jared Goff of California as their QB of choice.
As the draft approached, the Browns were confident they would get their man at No. 2 because the Titans had drafted Marcus Mariota the year before and were not in the quarterback market.
Alas, the Rams caught the Browns sleeping and traded for Tennessee’s No. 1 pick 14 days before the draft, leapfrogging from No. 15. It soon became clear the Rams would formally pick Goff at No. 1.
Carson Wentz of North Dakota State was the other quarterback standing. The Browns didn’t like him enough to take him, as DePodesta later stated in an infamous interview with me – one of his last – that he didn’t consider Wentz a top-20 caliber NFL quarterback.
Six days after the Rams trade, the Browns pivoted. They moved out of the No. 2 spot in a trade with Philadelphia. The Browns later traded down a second time, with Tennessee, ironically, and wound up with receiver-bust Corey Coleman and a bunch of future picks, which were squandered.
Moral of the story: Don’t sleep on the No. 2 pick this year.
Cam Ward of Miami clearly is the best quarterback in the draft. Tennessee has indicated a willingness to trade No. 1 again. The Titans are locked on taking Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter and don’t want to fall too low to lose him. So they know the price tag to trade down one spot, or two, can’t be prohibitive.
The Giants, at No. 3, struck out in their attempt to woo available veteran QB Matthew Stafford to the Big Apple. GM Joe Schoen made it clear at the Combine that the Giants will do anything to fix their quarterback situation.
Even if early intel is that the Giants are fixated on Shedeur Sanders of Colorado, the Browns should not risk getting aced out again for the top QB.
They should – no, must – trade up with Tennessee as soon as possible to secure Ward as the next Browns QB hopeful.
2. Maximize the Myles Garrett situation pronto with a trade.
If the Browns stand firm in their public posture against trading Garrett, one of two things will happen, and both of them are bad:
* Garrett changes his mind and accepts a new, mega-contract with the Browns that makes him the highest-paid non-QB in the NFL.
* Garrett doesn’t change his mind and holds out, possibly through the six-game threshold needed to qualify for an accrued season.
Berry’s history is that his public words sometimes don’t match his eventual actions. He insisted Odell Beckham Jr. would remain with the Browns and then negotiated his release in November of 2021. Berry insisted Baker Mayfield wouldn’t be traded and then traded him in July of 2022.
These examples aren’t lost on Garrett, or his reps, and other NFL teams who are seriously considering legit offers for Garrett. Diana Russini of The Athletic has identified the Super Bowl-champion Eagles as a team interested in Garrett. I would bet there are at least two or three others, probably more.
Berry and the Browns should end the delusion that Garrett will change his mind and be a happy camper about it. If that happens, he would come back simply for the money and not because he changed his outlook on the team’s chances to win. When your best player stays only for the money, your team culture worsens.
The Browns should let it be known as soon as possible that they will comply with Garrett’s trade request – either privately or publicly. Houston did this with Deshaun Watson in March of 2022 and created an auction among four teams that resulted in an epic windfall. (Unfortunately the Browns paid Houston’s price and then exacerbated the bad deal with a record-breaking and salary cap-wrecking contract for Watson.)
The Browns should trade Garrett for the best deal they can get and not worry about satisfying Garrett’s wish to play for a Super Bowl contender.
Garrett has leverage in forcing a trade, but he doesn’t have the leverage to pick his team.
3. Select a running back on Day 2 of the draft.
Trading Garrett indeed would create an unforced need at edge rusher.
But the extra picks received in a trade of Garrett – which absolutely should include a No. 1 pick in 2026 – should enable the Browns to also address what I see as an overlooked major need at running back.
Berry’s statement that he expects Nick Chubb to test the market in free agency means the team is ready to seek a fresher running back. Even if Chubb were to return on a club-friendly contract, his days as the team’s No. 1 back are over.
Two of the deepest positions of this draft happen to be at edge rusher and running back. The Browns should not wait beyond the second or third rounds to draft their next No. 1 running back.
4. Don’t sleep on Jaxson Dart.
To me, the Ole Miss record-holder was the most impressive quarterback at the Combine.
That doesn’t mean I would consider him with the Browns’ No. 2 overall pick. But if they choose to trade down and use a later pick in the first round on a quarterback, he would be my guy.
Dart was excellent in his podium interview and, most importantly, did not shy from competing in everything required of him. Ward and Sanders evaded the pressure of the intense scrutiny of the on-field quarterback workouts. They will save their arm for their pro day. Dart embraced the competition and produced.
His throws were strong, accurate and on time. He showed he doesn’t need the comforts of the Lane Kiffin quarterback-friendly system to excel.
At Ole Miss, Dart improved each of his three years in completion percentage, yards, touchdowns, interceptions and passer rating. He has prototypical NFL QB size at 6-2 ½, 228 pounds.
Despite being the youngest QB prospect in the draft – he’ll be 21 years, 11 months, 11 days old on April 27 – he made 41 starts in one year at USC and three at Mississippi.
Ward, one year older, had 57 college starts. Sanders, 15 months older, had 50. Quinn Ewers, two months older, had 36. Jalen Milroe, six months older, had 27.
Whatever are the knocks on Dart, I don’t understand them. He should be a strong consideration if the Browns blow the opportunity to draft Ward.