Andrew Berry added two more LSU Tigers in safety Grant Delpit and linebacker Jacob Phillips and a third from Missouri, defensive tackle Jordan Elliott on Day 2 of the 2020 NFL Draft Friday night.
The fact that all four picks made through two days by Berry are all from the SEC just happen to be a coincidence.
“I can assure you that we did not plan it, but these are all really good football players in arguably the best conference in college football,” Berry said. “It is certainly a good place to start for us, but it just happened to work out that way.”
As the NFL’s youngest general manager, Berry could’ve picked worse strategies to go with than selecting all of his players from the football factories located down south.
“We did not go into this saying, ‘Let’s only draft SEC players,’” head coach Kevin Stefanski said, echoing his GM. “Now, if you are only going to draft from one league, it probably would make sense to draft from that league. It just is how it shook out.”
Stefanski described all three players taken Friday as “a schematic fit” for what is expected to be a revamped defense under new defensive coordinator Joe Woods.
The run on SEC players isn’t just a Berry or Browns thing either. Of the 106 picks made so far in this draft, 40 of them are from the SEC. LSU tied Ohio State’s 2016 record with 10 players drafted through three rounds.
Berry also made a pair of trades Friday night, moving down in the second and third rounds.
The first deal was with the Colts that saw him slide back three spots from 41 to 44. The trade got Berry and the Browns into the fifth-round Saturday at No. 160.
Then came Delpit.
“There is a versatility to his game,” Stefanski said. “You saw him play every job in the backend, except corner. He can be in the post. He can be down low. He can play nickel. He can play dime. A guy that can play across the defense was impressive. He is certainly a playmaker, and something we will stress is making plays on the ball. That is something that has shown up in his career.”
Sitting at 74 in round three, Berry dropped 14 spots to 88 in a deal with the Saints that also netted him a 2021 third-round pick. Bonus points get awarded to Berry for throwing in his seventh rounder – No. 244 – to complete the transaction.
Phillips followed.
“The quickness,” Stefanski said. “That is a big thing for our defensive line in terms of getting off of the ball. That is something I think he has and something that needs to be developed.”
Elliott was taken at 97 with the Duke Johnson pick acquired from Houston to wrap up the night.
“We really liked the length, the speed and the ability to play in the system,” Stefanski said. “Those linebackers have to run. You see him running in that system they play down there at LSU. You see him running down the sideline going to make great tackles. Just a high-effort, high-motor guy.”
With Joe Burrow in Cincinnati attempting to resurrect the Bengals, the Browns not only added young talent but now have some intel on their new rival courtesy of a pair of Burrow’s former defensive teammates and of course new left tackle Jedrick Wills.
“A very happy coincidence,” Berry said. “Hopefully, that gives us a little bit of an advantage here moving forward.”
At LSU Burrow was off limits for Delpit and Phillips but not anymore in Cincinnati.
“I am going to enjoy it,” Phillips said. “We could not tackle him in practice, so I am going to enjoy it.”
The Browns enter Saturday with three selections – No. 115 in round four, No. 160 in round five and No. 187 in round 6.