With the Browns season spiraling out of control, it’s never too soon to begin looking towards the draft, and all the possibilities we could see the Browns do.
It’s clear the Browns need offense. Fans debate between quarterback, wide receiver and offensive tackle, trying to figure which position is the current biggest need on the roster.
In a recent mock draft from Todd McShay, he has the Browns trading up one spot, from the fourth pick to the third, to select quarterback Ty Simpson from Alabama.
Despite this being the first year of real production from Simpson, he has been outstanding for the Crimson Tide. He has tossed 2,461 yards and 21 touchdowns this year, compared to just one interception.
He has put Alabama at an 8-1 record, currently ranking them #4 in the nation.
It would be a shocking move to see the Browns make a trade to move up one spot. The trade would have to happen with the New York Giants, a team that has already found their quarterback of the future in this year’s draft with Jaxson Dart.
Cleveland would have the draft capital to move up if they needed to though. After trading back in last year’s draft, they picked up an extra first round pick from the Jacksonville Jaguars. They have also stayed busy during the season, picking up late round picks from the Bears, Jaguars and Bengals.
It would be shocking to see Cleveland use assets to move up just one spot, but if they see something they really like from Simpson, they could ensure they get him.
On top of that, the Browns are already in an interesting situation with their quarterbacks. The team currently has three, with two being rookies and one being the highly-paid Deshaun Watson.
Cleveland will have just the remainder of the season to figure out where each quarterback stands. Currently, the Browns are still evaluating Dillon Gabriel, a third round pick. Despite displeasure from fans, Cleveland wants to give Gabriel every opportunity to show potential. While some people won’t admit it, Gabriel has shown improvement over the past few weeks.
The Browns will also likely give Shedeur Sanders a few weeks near the end of the season. Cleveland took Sanders in the fifth round, and Sanders has had a hard time finding playing time.
Fans have been optimistic with Sanders though, hoping he can prove himself once he gets on the field. He’ll need to show he can read a defense, and hang in a pocket, even with a struggling offensive line, if he wants a real chance.
The last piece of the puzzle is Watson. The Browns have invested plenty of time and money into him over the past few seasons, with terrible results. Two ACL tears have limited Watson as well, but it seems he’ll be back before the end of the year.
Cleveland could survive the cap hit if they released him in the offseason, meaning it would be useful for Cleveland to get looks on him before making that kind of decision.
No matter what the Browns do in the draft, fans should be optimistic. This year’s draft class has been one of the league’s best. If the team can hit like that again, the Browns turnaround should take no time.
There are so many depressing elements to a future in which the Cleveland Browns play in a dome. Obviously, no longer being in the city itself will be a tough pill to swallow, but taking the team off of Lake Erie, and out of the elements altogether will make home games feel less and less like real Browns football.
So, savor the games while you can. As it happens, one should be cropping up this weekend, just the Browns’ second home game since October 5, and though there is no lake-effect snow on the horizon, there is definitely lake-effect weather on the way: Winds of up to 35 mph are expected, and there’s little doubt that will have an impact on how Week 11 plays out vs. the Ravens.
Indeed, on the ESPN morning show, “Get Up” on Friday, it was pointed out that the Browns are expecting severe wind at Huntington Bank Field this week, and that when it comes to keeping up with the Ravens, that could be a good thing.
On the gambling front, we’ve already see the point spread move in the favor of the Browns because of high expected winds.
As ESPN betting guru Joe Fortenbaugh said, pointing to a graphic that showed 35 mph as a possibility: “Wind gusts in this matchup are having an effect on both the spreads and the totals. We’ve seen the point spread go from a high of 9.0 down to 7.5, and we’ve seen the total dip significantly from 41.5 to 38.5.
“That plays right into the hands of the Cleveland Browns. If the wind affects passing, Cleveland is not passing well whether they’re in perfect conditions or indoors. That’s going to affect what Lamar wants to do offensively.”
Indeed, one of the talking points surrounding this Browns team for the past month-and-a-half, since quarterback Dillon Gabriel took over the starting role, has been the Browns’ utter inability to pass the ball. The Ravens, meanwhile, appear to have survived a second Lamar Jackson injury scare after he hurt his knee against Minnesota last Sunday.
Jackson had missed three games with a hamstring injury. In six games, he has thrown for 1,249 yards and a 70.1% completion rate, with 15 touchdowns and one interception.
At the Roto Grinders website, the Browns-Ravens game was given an “orange/yellow” weather warning by meteorologist Kevin Roth, who noted: “Winds are coming off the lake with some bite. Sustained winds around 20mph, gusts up around 30mph. Winds might taper off a hair late game, but not much. I’m putting this a touch lower on the impact scale than BUF because there’s no precip here, but winds are the primary issue in both spots regardless.”
As scary as the wind might be for what’s been a moribund Browns offense, the performance of the Ravens defense lately might be just as imposing. This was a unit that was getting shredded through five games, allowing 35.4 points, but has gotten healthier and made some adjustments.
In the last four games, Baltimore has allowed only 14.5 points per game.
Said Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees: “They do a great job schematically. You know, they have a lot of people that can play in different roles. …
“They have a veteran group up front that have good rush patterns, good gains and stunts. They use personnel in multiple ways. So, the ‘backs got to be tied into it. Our line’s got to be tied into it. Our tight ends, the pass catchers themselves. It’s always a race between them and the pass rushers to get open. And our whole group needs to understand how critical that is.”