Cleveland (92.3 The Fan) - The Cleveland Browns are expected to use the first pick in the 2018 NFL Draft on a quarterback.
The question remains with the draft now officially less than a month away is, which one?
No one, including head coach Hue Jackson, is tipping their hand.
“There’s something that we want, there’s no question and I think that all four of those guys have it,” Jackson said via NFL Network at the NFL owners meetings in Orlando, Florida Tuesday morning. “It’s not so much working around but you gotta really bring it out of them.
“I think that all four of these guys have the qualities that we’re looking for. We just gotta find the right fit for us.”
Last week Jackson along with Browns owner Jimmy Haslam, general manager John Dorsey, new offensive coordinator Todd Haley, quarterbacks coach Ken Zampese and a host of other scouting and front office personnel blazed a trail from southern California through Oklahoma up to Wyoming to see all four.
They worked out UCLA's Josh Rosen, had dinner with USC's Sam Darnold and attended his pro day in the rain, privately worked out Baker Mayfield before ending the trip in Wyoming at Josh Allen's pro day.
"It was awesome. It was a real bonding session for our organization," Jackson said via NFL Network. "We see each other every day when we go to work but to be in those kind of close quarters together talking to players and watching each other ask questions and to watch the guys work out, watch the guys on the board, watch how I go about saying things to the quarterbacks, how Todd goes about it, how Kenny Zampese goes about it.
“I thought it brought us all closer. I thought it made us understand each other. The thing that I love about it – there’s no egos in this at all. We’re truly trying to do what we think is best for the organization.”
Jordan Palmer is working with and ran the pro days for both Darnold and Allen to prepare them for the draft. Jackson has a long history with Palmer and his family and he is using that relationship to cultivate as much information as possible to make their decision.
“I trust him because I’ve known him since he was a little bitty guy and obviously I know his brother extremely well. The one thing he won’t do is try to compare the two because I think he’s trying to be fair,” Jackson said. “The little bitty things that maybe you don’t get to know, he knows. And so, I trust him when he tells me things. He’s been a good resource for us.”
