They Did What?: Recap of Browns 2025 First Round Draft

Well this certain didn’t go the way we expected. When Cleveland went 3-14, we all assumed it was to pick as high as possible, to acquire the bluest of blue chippers, whether that be the best QB in a one QB draft (It wasn’t) or the two-way-playing, reigning Heisman champ who everyone concluded had the highest of ceilings (Nope x2). And if they did in fact call out the name Travis Hunter at No. 2 overall, we expected them to use the volatile 33rd pick to move up and take a quarterback at the end of the first round, whether that be Hunter’s bestie Shedeur Sanders or the skyrocketing-in-draft-profile Jalen Milroe or even Ole Miss’s Jaxson Dart. Yet here we stand, Friday morning, with egg on our face as we are looking at who the best available offensive players are with two picks in the next four, knowing that the defensive line has likely been taken care of with the pick of Mason Graham, DT from Michigan.

Am I upset they didn’t take Hunter? Slightly. I had begun to waver through the week about the idea of Hunter. “He should be a CB/WR, not WR/CB.” “He’s too light to be a good wideout.” “Abdul Carter across from Myles Garrett is what good teams would do.” Turns out I was right on that Cleveland would pass on Hunter, but a trade out of the top two to pick five was not on my bingo card. Taking Hunter, a reportedly high character person and player that would have helped transform the offense while moonlighting on passing downs, would have been a feather in the cap of a front office that orchestrated a tanking season to get one of the most projectable players we’ve seen in years. Alas…

But does that make the move wrong? Not necessarily. Graham was near the top of most rankers’ big boards. He’s a volatile defender that can rush the passer (3.5 sacks from a DT is a big number) while also stopping the run effectively (Seven tackles for loss and 45 combined tackles overall). There are even reports that Garrett pushed for Graham to be the pick. And the picks in return from Jacksonville are great: a first round next year and a high second in this year’s draft is good ammo to fill a roster that is woefully thin due to lacking picks over the years and misses on what few the front office had. They now have the picks to still get that quarterback that’s needed, add a running back and/or wide receiver to the offense, mix in some big boy offensive line guys, AND be able trade up to get someone they prefer over others.

I think the moves overall, trading back to Pick 5 and not moving up to select a sliding Sanders or Milroe, are smart yet disappointing. Many fans and analysts had Hunter as the “can’t miss prospect” of the draft and Cleveland decidedly chose to miss out on him. Do they help bolster the teams future? Yes. Do they help this year’s chances with more early picks? Absolutely. It all comes down to whether or not you believe Andrew Berry and Co. are the ones to make the picks. I can say I’ve been frustrated with how little they have been able to pull out of the limited selections they have had in years previous, so giving this group more picks doesn’t seem to be the move, but I also am welcome to being wrong. The team has four picks in Day 2, including two in the first four picks of the second round; they should be able to come out of the second and third rounds with at least three starters on this roster, possibly all four. If that proves true, then this might be the win they needed to retool a roster that had been beset by poor performance from drafters…who are still the ones making the picks…