When it comes to NFL football in Cleveland, the more things change, the more we kinda hope they don’t stay the same.
The Cleveland Browns, the franchise with the league’s third-fewest regular-season wins over the last decade, and precisely three postseason games in that time period, are attempting once again to get it right with a radical shift in coaching staffs. Gone are Kevin Stefanski and Jim Schwartz, as all Browns fans have known for a while now, and in come new head coach and offensive shot-caller Todd Monken, new offensive coordinator Travis Switzer, and new defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg.
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In addition, the Browns’ offensive line underwent an offseason overhaul the likes of which we haven’t seen since the Kansas City Chiefs parted out their entire front five in 2022 following their Super Bowl LV loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Gone are guards Joel Bitonio (likely retired) and Wyatt Teller (signed with the Houston Texans), center Ethan Pocic, and tackle Jack Conklin; in come guards Zion Johnson and the re-signed Tevin Jenkins, center Elgton Jenkins, and tackle Tytus Howard. We’ll see how it all goes, but at least there’s some talent there, and the team was proactive regarding the inevitable.
Some things do remain, of course. GM Andrew Berry is still valiantly trying to maintain a salary cap that has Deshaun Watson hanging over him like the Sword of Damocles (2027 can’t come soon enough), the defense is still relatively packed with estimable talent, and the quarterback situation is still as undefined as it’s seemingly been since the days of Brian Sipe and the Kardiac Kids.
Now that the big moves in NFL free agency are in the rearview, it’s time for Berry, Monken, and everybody else in the building to turn their attention to the draft. How can these guys get the most out of a draft that will go a long way to defining what appears to be a murky, blurry future at this point in time? Armed with my own amateur tape study, a bunch of fancy numbers, and the PFF Mock Draft Simulator, here are my humble suggestions based on the draft capital the team has right now.
Round 1, Pick 6 (6): Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State
So… here’s where the rubber meets the road, so to speak. Do the Browns select the Best Offensive Lineman Available at 6 if none of the guys are pitched that high from a talent perspective? Maybe they try to trade down and grab Spencer Fano or Monroe Freeling or Francis Mauigoa or whomsoever they might like most?
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Both are understandable options, and if the Browns were to take a franchise-defining tackle with the sixth pick, I’m sure that most people in the greater Cleveland area wouldn’t be too bummed out about it. But in this case, I’m giving Browns quarterback (YOUR NAME HERE) his new No. 1 receiver. Because with the O-line moves the team made in free agency, I would say that receiver is the greatest need on the team right now (outside of the guy throwing the ball to said receiver), and I’m solving that with Carnell Tate.
On most any other team, Tate would be recognized as a guy who can move all over the formation, and really does have legitimate X-iso traits. Problem was, Tate was working with Jeremiah Smith, and when you’re standing next to a “generational” player, you might get a bit lost in the shuffle. I’ve seen the 6′ 2¼”, 192-pound Tate referred to as an ideal ”Z” receiver, which means that he’s your No. 2 guy. Maybe Tate is the No. 2 guy when Jeremiah Smith is No. 1, but how many Jeremiah Smiths are there?
Last season, Tate caught 51 passes on 66 targets for 875 yards and nine touchdowns. Not exactly OMG stats, but when you watch the tape, and you put Tate in a receiver room that’s a big box of meh right now, it’s clear that he becomes Todd Monken’s force multiplier in the passing game, and that’s what the Browns need.
Right now.
(From Jacksonville Jaguars) Round 1, Pick 24 (24): Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, DB, Toledo
One thing that very few people wanted to see happen was Jim Schwartz’s decision to walk away from his defensive coordinator position after the regime change took place. If you talk to offensive coaches around the league, they’ll tell you that few DCs keep them up at night trying to figure out counters more than Schwartz does — Monken even referred to that in his introductory presser when he said that “It’s been a b*tch, I apologize, to go against his defense six times over the last three years.”
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That said, it’s now up to Mike Rutenberg to call this defense and try to approximate the challenges Schwartz brought. One thing that would help would be one of the new do-it-all defensive backs who can win in the box, in the slot, and in the deep third. From Kyle Hamilton to Brian Branch to Nick Emmanwori, these players are the NFL’s new Most Cherished Thing, and it’s easy to see why when they allow you to run light boxes and two-high coverage without getting gashed in the run game.
This draft has three “unicorns” who could go in the first round: Ohio State’s Caleb Downs, Oregon’s Dillon Thieneman, and Toledo’s Emmanuel McNeil-Warren. Of the three, I believe that McNeil-Warren has the most range from the box out to the slot or back to the deep third, and if strength of competition concerns have him here with the 24th pick, I wouldn’t hesitate. Last season, the 6′ 3½”, 201-pound McNeill-Warren had 43 solo tackles, 18 stops, four tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, one sack, and five total pressures. In coverage, he allowed six catches on 15 targets for 116 yards, 50 yards after the catch, one touchdown, two interceptions, five pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 50.3.
It’s no knock on Rutenberg to say that the Browns might not have the schematic advantages they did with Schwartz, at least at the beginning, so you want to shore up these potential issues with personnel. McNeil-Warren would be a great equalizer.
Round 2, Pick 7 (39): Ty Simpson, QB, Alabama
When asked about his quarterback situation at the scouting combine, Todd Monken had this to say:
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“You would hope that by the time you get to training camp that the reps that you’re giving to a quarterback is for your starter. Whether we get to that place, I don’t know. That’ll be determined in the offseason as part of it. It’s just another part of the piece… I don’t mean that saying it harshly, but I don’t think there’s enough on film over the last couple years one way or the other to say, ‘Boy, we haven’t started our quarterback yet,‘ whether internally or externally.”
Anytime a coach says in February that he’d like his quarterback situation resolved by training camp, that’s several red flags unfurled at the same time.
Monken has espoused an open competition for that position, and you know how it is — a new head coach will want at least one quarterback he likes, as opposed to those he may have inherited. Monken was also open to bringing in an outsider to compete for reps, and this is where someone like Alabama’s Ty Simpson could come in.
Because on the surface, Simpson seems to have it all on the ball, especially for a guy who only started one year in college. In 2025 for the Crimson Tide, the 6-foot-1 ⅛”, 211-pound Simpson completed 306 of 474 passes for 3,561 yards, 28 touchdowns, five interceptions, and a passer rating of 102.5. He also ran the ball 70 times for 292 yards and two touchdowns. He completed 26 of 62 passes of 20 or more air yards last season for 784 yards, six touchdowns, three interceptions, and a passer rating of 101.2, and when under pressure, he managed 58 of 111 passes for 703 yards, four touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 75.0. Now when blitzed, Simpson was amazing — 121 completions in 208 attempts for 1,409 yards, 13 touchdowns, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 95.6. He also adds functionality to one’s offense as a runner on designed runs and scrambles, and he’s very good outside the pocket.
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I recently did a longer-form video about my concerns regarding Simpson’s NFL future, but I also don’t think that any of the things he needs to work on are unmanageable — they just require more coaching. And that’s something that Monken can certainly do.
Round 3, Pick 6 (70): Keyron Crawford, EDGE, Auburn
Wait. You’re bypassing O-line help in the third round for an edge-rusher? What kind of idiot are you, Farrar? Well, yes. Again, it’s important to look at the needs after the Browns redefined their offensive line pre-draft, and where other holes are that must be filled. Because while the Browns do have the NFL’s best edge defender in Alex Wright (just kidding; we all know it’s Isaiah McGuire), there’s a need for somebody to come in and bookend that Myles Garrett guy so that Garrett can finally live up to his NFL potential.
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Har-de-har-har. Well, here’s a guy I would love to see on the other side of No. 95 from time to time — Auburn’s Keyron Crawford. In 2025, the 6′ 4″, 253-pound Crawford amassed five sacks, 43 total pressures, five tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and 23 solo tackles with 24 stops. Like a lot of guys in this draft class on both sides of the line, Crawford will get dinged for his arm length by some (32”, eighth percentile for edge defenders since 1999), but it’s not something you really see on tape to a ridiculous degree, and the adaptive strategies are already in place.
Round 4, Pick 7 (107): Kaleb Proctor, DL, Southeastern Louisiana
Now, this is a case where I’m not really looking for need as much as I’m seeing one of MY GUYS at 107, and simply pulling the trigger. Because Kaleb Proctor has been one of my favorite prospects to evaluate in this class. Maybe it’s my bias for smaller interior defensive linemen that goes all the way back to John Randle, but when I watch the 6’2”, 291-pound Proctor beating the living daylights out of opposing blockers from multiple gaps, and jumping those gaps like some sort of radioactive tarantula, I’m all the way in.
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In 2025, Proctor had nine sacks, 39 total pressures, 18 solo tackles, 22 stops, and two tackles for loss, while lining up everywhere from nose shade to over the tackles. Proctor then tested right out of the damned building at the combine. I would love to see him perform his special brand of stunt-fu on any NFL defensive line, so why not this one?
(From Las Vegas Raiders) Round 5, Pick 1 (141): Cyrus Allen, WR, Cincinnati
Okay, so. The Browns now have Carnell Tate to add to a group that already includes (checks notes) Jerry Jeudy, Cedric Tillman, Isaiah Bond…
Huh.
And while we’re thinking of offensive line, another thing that helps keep your quarterback upright is a cabal of receivers who know how to get open at the right time.
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What you’re hearing in the background is Cyrus Allen’s music. Turn it up.
Last season for the Bearcats, the 5’11”, 180-pound Allen caught 49 passes on 69 targets for 661 yards and 12 touchdowns. Perfectly cromulent numbers, but when you watch his tape, that’s where the buzz begins. Because especially on his 12 explosive receptions, Allen has the route awareness and understanding of how to get open that you’d expect from a five-year NFL veteran. Allen can speed up or slow down to adjust to ball velocity and flight (an important skill in his college offense, as it would be were he to join the Browns), and the second-level acceleration really stands out. Yes, he did most of his work in the slot, but it’s not that he can’t play outside — it’s more that Cincinnati had the 6’5”, 216-pound Jeff Caldwell doing all of his superhero stuff there.
Getting open is an alpha skill. The Browns need more of it. Cyrus Allen can do it all day. Case closed.
Round 5, Pick 6 (146): Nicholas Singleton, RB, Penn State
With Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson as their primary running backs, the Browns are pretty set at the position as regards depth and variety. That’s true as long as Judkins stays healthy, and he’s fully on the mend from the dislocated ankle he suffered last December. When it comes to power backs who specialize in blunt force trauma, adding to the group is never a bad thing.
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Which is why Penn State’s Nicholas Singleton would be a nice bargain pick in the fifth round. 2025 was a bit of a down year for Singleton after he totaled more than 1,000 yards from scrimmage in each of his first three seasons (768 yards and 14 touchdowns on 147 touches is still decent), and Singleton still had a lot of big plays even as Kaytron Allen became the alpha dog in the Nittany Lions’ run game. At 6’0” and 219 pounds, Singleton still forced an impressive 59 missed tackles on his 124 carries, and 13 rushing touchdowns is nothing to sneeze at. Moreover, he shoots out of the backfield like a rocket, and he’s got that bruising style every offense needs.
Not that Singleton is going to be Derrick Henry or anything, but you’d think that Monken would appreciate another big back with some serious acceleration.
(From Cincinnati Bengals) Round 5, Pick 9 (149): Isaiah World, OT, Oregon
At last, we address the offensive line.
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To a point.
Were Oregon left tackle Isaiah World fully healthy coming into his draft year, he’d probably be on the periphery of the first and second rounds. That’s what happens when guys standing 6’8 and weighing 318 pounds allow one sack and 18 total pressures in 437 pass-blocking reps as World did last season, and further prove able to stone dudes in the run game.
Unfortunately, the torn left ACL World suffered in Oregon’s playoff loss to Indiana will put his NFL future on hold for a while. Maybe he doesn’t need an entire redshirt year to hit the field again, but that’s not out of the question. And that’s how you get a first- or second-day talent this late — you’re betting on hope to a point. Were it to work out, and World was to bone up on a few technique fixes in the meantime, he does have the look of a franchise tackle at his best. Spackling things together in the meantime wouldn’t be the worst thing in the… World.
(Sorry. Dad Joke.)
(From Chicago Bears) Round 6, Pick 25 (206): Dae’Quan Wright, TE, Ole Miss
Last season, Monken’s Ravens offense ranked third in percentage of 12 personnel — one running back, two tight ends, and two receivers— at 36%. Guess who ranked first at 44%? That would be your very own Cleveland Browns. And when in 12 personnel, your very own Cleveland Browns completed 137 of 227 passes for 1,205 yards, 10 touchdowns, a league-high nine interceptions, and a passer rating of 74.8 — the NFL’s third-worst, ahead of only the New Orleans Saints and the Houston Texans.
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Just because you do something over and over doesn’t mean you’re automatically good at it. Maybe Malcolm Gladwell should re-think that whole 10,000 hours thing. Anyway, in service of better play and more efficiency, perhaps it would behoove the Browns to add juice their tight end group behind Harold Fannin, now that David Njoku has been cast to the four winds.
In that department, I present one of the more underrated tight ends in this class — Ole Miss’s Dae’Quan Wright. Last season, the 6’4”, 246-pound Wright caught 39 passes on 55 targets for 635 yards and five touchdowns, and like Cyrus Allen, Wright can get open more often than not. He’s more of a big receiver than a true do-it-all tight end as a blocker, but hey — if the Browns are going to run a crapload of 12 personnel, that “2” has to mean something.
(From Seattle Seahawks) Round 7, Pick 32 (248): Keagen Trost, OL, Missouri
Another get for the offensive line, and Keagen Trost is an interesting player. At 6’5” and 311 pounds, and with 32⅜” arms that are fifth percentile among offensive tackles since 1999, Trost allowed just one sack and seven total pressures at right tackle in 432 pass-rushing reps.
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Where Trost’s future spot gets fascinating is that he played “inside tackle” when the Tigers went with six offensive linemen last season, which they did from time to time, and when Trost did kick inside to guard a bit, he showed a lot of toughness and resolve. In the run game, this goy doesn’t just want to block you; he wants to embarrass you, take your lunch money, and steal your girl as the closing credits roll.
I’m not automatically banishing Trost from of a future at tackle in the NFL because of his short arms; this could be more of a swing lineman who gives the Browns some positional flexibility as they try to put all the pieces together up front.
How does this mock draft sit with you, dear readers? Fire away in the comments below.
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