First thoughts on what the Browns did in the draft Friday night and what it all might mean for the organization …
• Andrew Berry is the youngest general manager in NFL history and is overseeing his first draft. We don’t know how any of these players’ careers will turn out, but Berry is running it like a pro. The Browns had three picks heading into Friday, and Berry made trades before the first two. In the process, he added a 2021 third-round pick and a 2020 fifth-round pick (the Browns previously didn’t have one in that round) and still got “name” prospects from the Southeastern Conference. Well, he’s now made four picks and picked four SEC players. There have been worse strategies, specifically from Berry’s predecessors. So we’ll see how it all works out.
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• “I can assure you we didn’t plan (to take only SEC players),” Berry said. “These are all really good players from arguably the best conference in the country.” Later, Kevin Stefanski said the Browns didn’t set out to take only SEC players but “if you’re only going to draft from one conference, that’s a good one to choose.”
• If you consume this draft stuff year-round, you know there was a time in the not-so-distant past that LSU safety Grant Delpit was regarded as a possible top-15 pick. Friday night, the Browns traded down three spots and got him at No. 44. Delpit fills a clear and immediate need for a playmaking safety. Later, the Browns got two players who figure to compete for jobs but aren’t guaranteed immediate snaps in Missouri defensive tackle Jordan Elliott and LSU linebacker Jacob Phillips. Linebacker was a glaring need (and still might be). Elliott is a nice developmental depth piece for now; Berry and Stefanski lauded his quickness off the snap and ability to disrupt offenses in the backfield.
• LSU won the national title last season, and Delpit won the Jim Thorpe Award as college football’s best defensive back. But that was probably more of a career achievement award after Delpit was a unanimous All-American in 2018, when he had five interceptions. Delpit played through injuries last season, specifically a high ankle sprain that severely limited him in October and November. He was forced to sit out one game but otherwise said he wouldn’t sit and let down his teammates. His play and production suffered. His tackling was poor, and that label seemed to follow him through the draft process. Naturally, his tackling was one of the first subjects brought up when Delpit talked with Cleveland reporters in a Zoom meeting Friday night. “I’m so tired of hearing that I can’t tackle. I might tackle you for asking that question,” he said. We think he was joking.
• Delpit certainly doesn’t lack confidence. He said now that he’ll be reunited in the Browns’ secondary with his college teammate and last year’s second-round pick, Greedy Williams, the Browns have the best secondary in the NFL. He instructed reporters to write “THE BEST” in all-caps. He compared himself to Ed Reed. He conducted the Zoom meeting from his family’s home, wearing a hoodie that simply read “DELPIT” across the chest. He sat on a chair in front of his Jim Thorpe Award trophy. He talks like he’s ready to be a star, and so for now, we’ll believe him.
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• The Browns have not been a good tackling team since well before any of these draft picks were born, so that’s an important part of Delpit’s game. Berry cited Delpit’s intelligence and ability to quickly process reads as a reason the Browns liked him. Stefanski said Delpit can play multiple spots and impressed with his ability to make plays with the ball in the air. The Browns are hoping to be playing with leads and are looking for defenders to help them protect those leads. Look for the Browns to continue to address the defense Saturday.
• We can project the Browns’ defensive tackle rotation as Sheldon Richardson, Larry Ogunjobi and Andrew Billings in the first tier with Elliott competing for snaps. Billings is on a one-year deal, Ogunjobi is entering the last year of his rookie deal and Richardson is under contract for 2021, but his guarantees are pretty much up after this season. So, there’s a lot at stake for each of the three top veteran guys in what looks like a good group. Elliott was a second-team AP All-American last fall and led Missouri with 8 1/2 tackles for loss. The Texas transfer said he’s lost 30 pounds over the past 18 months as he’s matured on and off the field and that he’s just scratching the surface of his potential.
• Stefanski said all four of the players the Browns have drafted thus far are “schematic fits.” In Phillips, Stefanski said the Browns found a rangy young player (he turned 21 three weeks ago) who can cover in a defense that will require its linebackers to be fast. Berry said Elliott will play the three-technique and be asked to use his quickness; he said Phillips has “the length, athleticism, speed and range of a modern NFL linebacker.”
• The Browns gave up pick No. 74 and pick No. 244 in Saturday’s seventh round for No. 88, which they used on Elliott, and a 2021 third-round pick. It was the first trade in this draft to involve a future draft pick, and a third-round pick — even what’s presumably a later one as it’s coming from the Saints — is a really good get. Analytics-driven front offices such as the Eagles and Ravens often load up on future picks, so it’s no surprise to see the Browns try to do the same. The Browns now have extra picks in Rounds 3-5 in 2021. In the trade down before picking Delpit, the Browns essentially picked up a free fifth-rounder from the Colts. They didn’t previously have a fifth-round pick.
• Here’s the tricky part of the Browns trading down: The Saints used that pick on Wisconsin linebacker Zack Baun, who was projected by many to go much higher but had a diluted sample at the combine and has some injury history. Baun was the second linebacker to be selected in the third round, and no other linebacker went until the Browns got Phillips at No. 97. That was one spot ahead of Ohio State’s Malik Harrison, who went to the Ravens, and six ahead of Colorado’s Davion Taylor, who went to the Eagles. So the Browns passed on a couple of names most fans know and also passed on adding several edge/linebacker types in favor of Elliott and Phillips. We’ll follow those players — and those decisions — closely in the coming years. The Ravens took Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins at No. 55. That certainly wasn’t a pick based on positional need. It was one designed to make the Ravens’ read-option game even better, so the Browns must tackle well and get strong linebacker play if they’re ever going to ascend in the AFC North.
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• Outside opinions count for nothing. But given the Browns’ horrendous track record, it’s been a long time since detractors had to wait until the third round to really quibble with or nitpick the team’s draft strategy.
• Through three rounds and 106 picks, 40 SEC players have been selected. Nineteen of those 40 (and three of the Browns’ four) are from LSU or Alabama, and 18 of them were picked before the Browns took Elliott at No. 88. Phillips was the 39th SEC player selected. LSU has had 10 players drafted through three rounds, tying Ohio State in 2016 for the most from a single team through three rounds.
• One more thought on edge rushers and former SEC players: The Seahawks traded up for one, Darrell Taylor of Tennessee, in the second round Friday night. That’s the strongest sign yet that Jadeveon Clowney, another former SEC guy and former No. 1 pick, won’t be returning to Seattle. Clowney remains a free agent. The Browns are still sitting on some cap flexibility. Stay tuned.
• If you’re looking for some kind of predictive track record for this new front office, maybe try this: Pro Football Focus ranked Jedrick Wills its No. 11 prospect in this draft. Delpit was No. 15, and Elliott was No. 23. The Browns are the only team to have three picks from the top 25. Maybe it’s coincidence. Maybe it’s just an SEC thing. Or maybe the evaluations match. So, with that in mind …
Top available players on PFF's board after RD 3:
26. Curtis Weaver, Boise State ED
37. Netane Muti, Fresno State IOL
48. Tyler Johnson, Minnesota WR
49. Bryce Hall, Virginia CB
53. Geno Stone, Iowa S pic.twitter.com/W5pnwvu6iT— PFF Draft (@PFF_College) April 25, 2020
• The Browns have three picks Saturday: No. 115 in the fourth round, No. 160 in the fifth round and No. 187 in the sixth round. Their fourth-rounder and next chance to take another SEC player is the ninth pick of the day when the draft resumes at noon ET. The Vikings currently have 13 picks Saturday, so if the Browns want to get back in at any point, they can use their Stefanski connection and work out a trade or trades.
(Photo of Grant Delpit: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
