CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – For the next three years, the Browns first round draft pick will be quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Cleveland’s first round picks in 2022, 2023 and 2024 are now property of the Houston Texans.
The draft fun for Andrew Berry and the Browns begins Friday night.
Berry and the Browns enter the Annual Selection Meeting with seven selections at their disposal: No. 44 overall in round 2, Nos. 78 and 99 in round 3, No. 118 in round 4, 202 in the sixth round and Nos. 223 and 246 in the seventh round.
No. 99 is a compensatory pick from the NFL for losing vice president of football operations Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to the Vikings, who hired him as their general manager. The sixth rounder came from Dallas as part of the Amari Cooper trade in March and the seventh rounders are a result of a pair of trades involving quarterbacks – No. 223 from Detroit for David Blough and 246 from Buffalo for Case Keenum.
This is the third time the Browns will pick 44th in a draft. Their previous two selections – safety Grant Delpit in 2020 and defensive end Jim Marshall in 1960.
Trading Baker Mayfield is also on Berry's hope to do list this weekend in addition to filling a few roster needs.
Considering the investment made at quarterback this offseason with the trade for Watson and signings of Jacoby Brissett and Josh Dobbs, Berry won’t spend a prime pick on a QB – this year.
Same goes for running back with Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt, D’Ernest Johnson and Demetric Felton all competing for touches, there just isn’t room for another back.
The linebacker room is also pretty full after the team re-signed Anthony Walker this offseason and drafted Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah last year in the second round. Jacob Phillips, Sione Takitaki, Tony Fields II and Willie Harvey Jr. all are competing for playing time. While depth is always a good thing and you can never have enough good players, the position group is down the list of priorities.
Cornerback would also be a surprise after Berry drafted Greg Newsome II 26th overall last year and gave Denzel Ward, picked fourth overall by the Browns in 2018, a $100 million extension but there is no such thing as having enough quality corners in the NFL.
The two most glaring and immediate needs for the Browns are thought to be among the deepest positions in this class – receiver and at defensive end.
Berry has selected a wideout in each of his first two drafts – Donovan Peoples-Jones in the sixth round in 2020 and Anthony Schwartz in round 3 last year. Could Berry go three for three? Absolutely with no clear-cut No. 2 receiver behind Cooper, but the Browns could view Peoples-Jones or Schwartz as that player. Still, they need depth even after adding Cooper and Jakeem Grant Sr. as their new returner this offseason.
Jadeveon Clowney remains a free agent. The Browns traded Mack Wilson to the Patriots for Chase Winovich and they signed defensive end Stephen Weatherly this offseason, but they still need a bookend for Myles Garrett and this could be the draft to find that player at a low multi-year cost in round 2 or 3.
Like defensive end, defensive tackle is another gaping area of need. They have 2020 third-round pick Jordan Elliott and 2021 fourth-rounder Tommy Togiai, who have both seen limited action, as well as Taven Bryan, signed as a free agent this offseason and former 2018 first-round pick.
Head coach Kevin Stefanski indicated that he is open to moving away from 13 personnel, but this weekend we will find out just how serious that thought is. After releasing Austin Hooper with a post June-1 designation, franchise tagging 2017 No. 29 overall pick David Njoku with Harrison Bryant serving as the No. 2 at the position, do they opt spend an early pick on the position?
Selecting an offensive lineman with one of their later round picks is a distinct possibility for the Browns. Nick Harris or Ethan Pocic will take over for JC Tretter, released as a cap casualty this offseason, at center. Guards Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller received contract extensions last fall leaving tackle as a potential position to spend a pick on. Jedrick Wills enters his third season but Jack Conklin, in the final year of his contract, and swing tackle Chris Hubbard are both coming off season-ending injuries in 2021.
Safety seems spoken for with John Johnson III, 2020 second-round pick Grant Delpit and the return of Ronnie Harrison. With Richard LeCounte III and Nate Meadows rounding out the position group currently on the roster, picking a safety on day 3 is a possibility.
With Grant, who made the Pro Bowl with the Bears, added as their new returner and Corey Bojorquez signed to punt, kicker is the lone headline need on special teams, even with Chase Mclaughlin being re-signed. McLaughlin faded down the stretch last season after starting off hot and Berry could spend a day 3 pick on a kicker.
