Looking forward to 2019, Browns NFL Rookie Draft

We can get some general chatter going here until Sam feels it pertinent to begin posting the individual position threads, once the declaration deadline passes.

Important dates pertaining to the NFL Draft:

January 13 -- Per @Tim (thank you), Spiral Tropical Bowl, Daytona L Stadium, Daytona Beach Florida.

January 14 -- Deadline for college players that are underclassmen to apply for special eligibility. A list of players who are accepted into the NFL Draft will be sent to clubs on January 18.

January 19 -- East-West Shrine Game, Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Florida.

January 26 -- Senior Bowl, Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Mobile, Alabama.

February 26-March 4 -- Combine Timing and Testing, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana.

April 25-27 -- NFL Draft, Nashville, Tennessee.

 

Two of my personal favorite events of the entire year.

Another contest you might want to check out - https://www.tropicalbowl.com/

 

Too bad you have to pay to watch it streamed online... Maybe in a couple more years it will get enough attention that the NFL Network picks it up.

 

Just wait for a couple days and you can catch it. The whole game gets posted on youtube a couple days after -

 

Changes: picks only

Mock Draft 1.1 | Sneak Peek

1.17: Dre'Mont Jones, DT Ohio State



The Browns are 26th in sacks (35) with 12.5 of those coming from one guy (Myles Garrett). He can't do it alone. Dre'Mont Jones is the second-best pressure guy on the Buckeyes (hot take alert: Chase Young is first). Through 13 games this season, he has 8.5 sacks and 13.0 TFL's. He also displayed great athleticism on the INT against TCU. This gives Emmanuel Ogbah one more season (his contract year) to really put something together and be the pass rusher he's expected to be.

2.49: Hakeem Butler, WR Iowa State



Baker is making due with some good - not great - receivers. Landry, Callaway, Higgins (pending RFA), Ricardo Louis (IR), Breshad Perriman, and Damion Ratley make up a solid stable but we lack a true No. 1 guy. At 6'6" and 225 pounds, Butler is a true red zone threat, but also leads all qualified FBS recievers with an eye-popping 22.1 YPC, making him a great deep threat, too. This guy has a chance to be a riser in this draft and establish himself as a first round pick, but for now I think he's being slept on a bit.

3.80 Rock Ya-Sin, CB Temple



As the NFL continues to be a pass-first league, it will become a requirement to have three starting-caliber outside cornerbacks. I believe we have two in Terrance Mitchell and Denzel Ward, but their dealing with injuries this season even further underscore the need to make a choice like this. Rock (great name) Ya-Sin is a big corner with limited big school experience - a transfer from FCS as a Senior, but who plays the outside corner position well enough to be developed. Very solid in man-to-man coverage.

3.92 (f/New England): Mitch Hyatt, OT Clemson



Re-signing Greg Robinson in the offseason has become a "must do" and I don't think we should give up on Desmond Harrison, but if the struggles through the first nine games were any indication, we do not have a 10-year plan at left tackle. Hyatt is a four year starter for the Clemson Tigers and was a highly-recruited high school prospect. I'm admittedly terrible at scouting offensive linemen, but it's crazy to me that he's still this low in the early big boards (I've seen him anywhere from 100 - 150 range). I think he's got a good chance to be a very capable starter for a long time in this league.

 

I moved this from the coaching thread here.

So, yeah, I agree 100%. We should be able to identify a player that will help shore up the interior in the run game.

I do believe that Quinnen Williams is the cream of the crop, but even with the QBs being falsely inflated, I still think he ends up a top 5 pick.

Besides him though, I think these guys have top half first round grades:
Ed Oliver
Dre'Mont Jones
Rashan Gary
Jeffery Simmons

If any of these guys above dropped to us at #17, I would jump on it!!

Borderline first round, definite high second round grades:
Jerry Tillery
Christian Wilkins
Dexter Lawrence

If we lost out on all from the first group at #17 and one of these dropped to #49, take him there. I think it is imperative we improve the defensive line play and any of these 8 players would do that.

I think ANY of these guys would help our run defense and maybe more importantly, our pass rush. These guys are all quality pass rushers, while having strong rush defense attributes. They would help our defense immensely.

IMHO, there is a small gap between the first group and second group...but, after that, there is still talent with a gorge between that group and this second group. They are good at one thing and struggle with the other. I think it would behoove us to get one of these guys on our team come April.

Average mock draft spot (7 mocks looked up)
1. Quinnen Williams - 3.29
2. Ed Oliver - 9.85
3. Rashan Gary - 9.86
4. Jeffery Simmons - 17.86
5. Christian Wilkens - 19.57
6. Dexter Lawrence - 24.29 (more of a 1 technique imo)
7. Dre'Mont Jones - 26.5
8. Jerry Tillery - 39.3

Others drafted in some 2nd rounds:
Gerald Willis III (four second round grades) 54.75 average of the 2nd rounds he was drafted..***Comes with off field baggage
Isaiah Buggs (two second round grades) 58.5 average of the 2nd rounds he was drafted.. One dimensional, would help Ogunjobi, but not sure he would shine on his own

 

If only he could get himself into better physical shape....smh. Geez. Safe to say, Rock is not the image that receivers want to see on the other side of the LOS staring back at them...

 

Talk about jacked...

I want this kid on my team....Eric's nephew, Ole Miss WR - D.K. Metcalf.

 

Another one of my favorites, though we'd likely have to move up;


Gamechanger at LB....Devin White.

 

And I wouldn't rule out this guy as a real possibility...

Iowa , TE - Noah Fant

Imagine Mayfield with duel TE weapons like Njoku and Fant...

 

Devin White will never get to #17, but he really might be worth moving up for. That dude is a football player...If it can be done, lets go get him. This ain't no Barkevious....

 

Isn't there a DB from Temple that is just completely shredded?

 

Literally seven posts previously...

 

damnit man...killed by the "go to first unread" option.

 

TopDawg's too early (4 rd.) Mock Draft....

CLEVELAND BROWNS
1(17) - D.K. METCALF, WR - OLE MISS


2(17) - MACK WILSON, LB - ALABAMA


3(17) ANDRE DILLARD, OT - WASHINGTON STATE


3(31) (from N.E.) MICHAEL JACKSON, CB - MIAMI


4(17) TERRY BECKNER JR., DT - MISSOURI

 

Whoa, I just saw a Daniel Jeremiah mock where he has Cleveland selecting Dillard in round 1...lol! Oh well. It might have been a little ambitious projecting him to us in the third round, but these early mocks are gonna be all over the place.

One serious question that I have when I look over the top 150 draft prospects is, how was Ole Miss only 5-7?? To have that much talent, and fail to even make it to a bowl game is ridiculous...They only went 6-6 the year before, with an Egg Bowl appearance. That's hard to believe when you see how many NFL caliber players are on the roster...Just my thoughts.

 

Here's what some "experts" are projecting for Browns in first round;

Mock Draft Roundup: Who does Mel Kiper Jr., other draft experts project to Browns at No. 17?

Andrew Gribble
B/R SENIOR STAFF WRITER

This is a new spot for the Browns.

In recent years, Cleveland was near or at the top of the draft. And while predictions for whom the Browns would take still had their fair share of misses, there were only so many guesses to make.

Now, with the Browns at No. 17 after their encouraging 2018 campaign, the possibilities seem endless.

We’ll track the guesses every week in some form or fashion leading up to the 2019 NFL Draft. Here’s the first round.

Mel Kiper Jr. - ESPN.com: DT Jeffery Simmons - Mississippi State*
Of note*: The ESPN draft guru compares Simmons to another former Bulldog, Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs. Jones, who was selected by Browns general manager John Dorsey, is coming off a 15.5-sack season.

Daniel Jeremiah - NFL.com: OT Andre Dillard - Washington State*
Of note*: Jeremiah considers Dillard, who was a three-year starter for the Cougars, to be the best pass protector in this year’s draft class.

Nate Davis - USA Today: Simmons*
Of note*: Simmons, a first-team All-SEC selection, was a dominant force in the middle of Mississippi State’s defense who constantly drew double teams.

Walter Cherepinsky - WalterFootball.com: DT Dre’Mont Jones - Ohio State*
Of note*: It’d mark the second straight year the Browns take a Buckeye in the first round. Last year’s didn’t work out too bad, did it?

Matt Miller - Bleacher Report: CB Deandre Baker - Georgia*
Of note*: Baker capped his final season at Georgia by winning the Jim Thorpe Award, which is given annually to the nation’s top defensive back.

Steve Palazzolo - Pro Football Focus: DT Christian Wilkins - Clemson*
Of note*: Wilkins surprised a lot of people when he opted to return for his senior season. His decision netted him a national championship and no damage to his draft stock,

R.J. White - CBSSports.com: Baker*
Of note*: A Miami native, Baker started for three seasons and racked up seven interceptions. He was a consensus All-American in 2018.

Chris Trapasso - CBSSports.com: WR D.K. Metcalf - Ole Miss*
Of note*: At 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, Metcalf would provide a massive target in Cleveland’s young receiving corps.

Ryan Wilson - CBSSports.com: Metcalf*
Of note*: Metcalf’s 2018 season was cut short by a neck injury. He had 26 catches for 569 yards and five touchdowns in seven games.

 

I might not even be looking at the right Ole Miss WR.... Dang that team was loaded up with pass catchers. Arguably the top two in this draft, and they have another one in DeMarkus Lodge that will likely be drafted in mid rounds...

Forget over-priced Antonio.... Maybe ^^^ A.J. is the Brown we should go after.

 

I wonder if Jacksonville got the same treatment before last season?

Cleveland's own pick, last seven seasons: 4, 6, 4, 12, 2, 1, 1, 17 (average #6 overall)

Jacksonville's own pick, last seven seasons: 5, 2, 3, 3, 5, 4, 29, 7* (average #7 overall)

 

Still want Dre'Mont Jones (at this point in time), but I will listen to and entertain all corner options as well - especially if a dude like Greedy Williams drops to #17.