DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum What Now Pt. 2

The issue becomes the difference between good and bad options. Not every option means it's a good opportunity. Just "taking a stab at it" because you are desperate only complicates the matter and makes it worse.

If they make a move at the QB position and it flops yet again it will be another black eye on this franchise and be money spent that could better have been spent elsewhere.

Heed the warning sign. Proceed With Caution!

j/c…

My hope is that Dom brings that beautiful rug with him to Berea.

I agree with both of you. The future QB isn't currently on the team.

The problem lies with options, there just aren't any viable ones for 2026.

I see Monken trying to get what he can out of a combination of Watson and Sanders in 2026. We might add a Gino Smith if he just wants to prolong his career and comes cheap, but my guess is he will hold out until a team desperate enough calls him about a viable starting role. I don't see him being in a huge hurry. I think we have seen what Cousins is post injury. He is another one that the market will probably be pretty dry on, with good reason. Again, if he comes cheap as a stop gap, I wouldn't balk at the insurance.

If none of that happens, I am fine with Gabriel being the 3rd QB. He isn't in the starter mix, I'm fairly certain of that.

I think Monken came in saying he will get what he can out of the two others and evaluate at the end of 2026 season.

I truly believe HIS next actual planned starter is in the 2027 draft.

Doesn't mean we have to lie down and lose 17 games.

I see what you're saying, but I'm running on the assumption that this current offensive rebuild is going to be done over mulitple off-seasons. For the QB position, we have to take our shot when it presents itself. This draft is garbage for QB (unless you're picking 1). FA is garbage for QB. Personally, I hope the org doesn't have any sort of appetite for squeezing water out of a stone when it comes to finding our next QB... at least until we've gotten a good foundation of supporting talent.

Too much squid ink, Dom.

Thus far most of Berry's decisions have had no direct impact on his employment or he would have been shown the door along with Stefanski.

What I disagreed about was what you said about being too rich for safety. I don't think so. The Browns have always struggled with stopping the run game.

Ward was taken first round pick 4 as a corner. Yes there is a difference between the two. I like safety, because they are that last line of defense. And having a physical run stopping safety is something the Browns could really use. Most safeties play that 10, 11-15 yards back. Downs was playing up close to the line and ready. Like Polamalu. Wouldn't it be nice to have a player like that.

Look at this year's Super Bowl. Defense on both teams, defense other than not great QB play was due to defense which won the game.

I would love Tate, Has been my number one guy for the Browns to take. The Browns have struggled with drafting a number one WR. Tillman in round three has been probably the best if not Donovan People Jones who was a 6th round pick.

I honestly don't know if Tate could impact the team more than Downs. Depends on who is QB and can make him a productive WR. Bisontis is a second or third round pick. No comparison to a Tate or Downs

I understand as most fans know that O- line and WR's are priorities. But saying Downs is too rich ? I can't agree with that.

I do appreciate your inputs, points and posts.

Sorry, I thought the body of the post explained completely. What I mean is in the context of our needs. If we are at #6, I have Tate and probably Tyson rated very closely with Downs. If I'm being honest, Downs is ever so slightly ahead of Tate, but not enough to ignore the glaring need that he would fill.

I would LOVE another run stuffer, but frankly, Schwessinger fills a lot of those "needs" that we had. He is all over the field and cuts the run production down immensely. The Browns were better against the pass last year, I conceded that, but they were also the LOWEST team in regards to pass attempts, which means the teams they played were running the ball, because they were playing from a lead position. If the offense can actually score points and keep the ball longer, that would automatically right itself and this could be the #1 defense in the NFL.. If Schwartz impact isn't too drastic.

We drafted Ward in a different time, the defense wasn't ready to win championships. Yes, the Super Bowl teams won with defense, but the Browns defense was better than both consistently over the season. The difference to get to those playoffs wasn't their defense, it was their offense.

Seattle
Defense ranking #6 overall
Offense ranking #7 overall

New England
Defense ranking #8 overall
Offense ranking #3 overall

Cleveland
Defense ranking #4 overall
Offense ranking #30 overall

If the Browns can get to a offense that would sneak into the top 10, they would close that gap enough to be contenders for a Super Bowl. Not just a playoff spot, but a Super Bowl. We will never close the gap without adding players to this roster for when we find a capable QB. If we find a QB, it will be too late because we will not have the players to help him succeed.

Seahawks had the #1 receiver in the league, the #16 RB in the league and the #5 QB in the league... that QB was Sam Darnold. He has never had a receiver like Smith-Njigba in his career, that put him into top 5 category status.

The reason the Seahawks won the Super Bowl was because the Patriots offense isn't done cooking yet. They still have needs and it showed on Super Bowl Sunday. They are young and probably will be back if they don't lose too many players along the way.

The Browns need to finish building this roster or a QB won't get the job done.

Conversely, we can't put too much weight on Carnell Tate's shoulders if we do end up drafting him at #6 because we do not and will not have that QB that can elevate his play yet... Well... unless by some miracle Desaun Watson's lease on life changes and he reverts back to the player he was for that one season that made Jimmy Haslem drool... I doubt that very much though.

I am not one to draft on need, like ever. However, we are in a unique situation right now where we have a Super Bowl caliber defense and the only thing holding us back is our offense.

My tune would be different if we had like the #12 offense and we are just looking for finishing pieces on both sides of the ball to get us over the top... that isn't the case at all.

On the flip side, my personal most glaring need is a left tackle. Problem is, I don't have a left tackle ranked in the top 30 of this draft. I can't reach on Freeling, who I have ranked at #32 in this class, at #6 overall. I have Tate ranked #3 in this draft class, so getting him at #6, FOR ME, is like winning the lottery. Now, I have Jeremiyah Love ranked at #1, which is ridiculous in itself because he is a running back and will most certainly go lower, probably closer to the #10 overall. I have Downs at #2 overall, but again, it just doesn't move the needle for the Browns to take a huge leap at overall completion.

To finish out my Top 10, just to give you an idea where I stand in my rankings, which I don't take position into account, I take dominance at their position, but I don't discount positions in my rankings.

#4 Olaivavega Ioane OG, will probably be drafted in the high 20's because he is a Guard
#5 Arvell Reese EDGE/LB, should be a hybrid LB because of all that he can do, but will be a square peg in a round hole because teams draft early for a pass rusher. He will probably be deemed a failure early until someone uses him properly
#6 Denzel Boston WR, this is going to be a shocker for many because the talking heads have him further down their WR rankings, but watching his film, he has the strongest hands of any receiver in this draft. He runs very crisp routes.
#7 Rueben Bain EDGE, the best pure pass rusher in this class, but I've seen him take plays off, which keeps him out of my top 5
#8 Francis Mauigoa, RT/G he is a mauler. IF the Browns decide to go all in on offensive line and can't trade down, I wouldn't have a problem with him at #6, as long as they plan on putting him at RT and not LT. I fear he is going to get over-drafted and put on the Left Side because of his draft position instead of where he is destined to be. Right tackles are taken down with guards, in the late teens at the earliest, but Francis is going to be a top 10 pick, I believe.
#9 Jordyn Tyson WR, he would probably be ahead of Boston if not for his injury history. Skills alone, he would probably move up to #6 on my list
#10 Chase Bisontis OG, No one has this guy in the first round and I don't get it. He is a mauler on the inside. He is the type of player that could step in on day 1 and replace Joel Bitonio. But he could also anchor the right side if we can re-sign Bitonio. The great news for us is, we can most likely get him at #24 or even possibly #39 if the talking heads are right in his rankings. This would depend a lot on the elevation of the QBs... just how desperate are teams to over-draft the QBs this year?

Speaking of QBs, I have Fernando Mendoza just out of the top ten at #12... Very worthy of the #1 overall pick, imho.

So, this might give you a better idea of why I feel the way I do about this draft class and why I am adamant about taking an offensive player with the first two picks in this draft. I watch a lot of you tube on every player in the top 100.. I probably miss out on a lot of players in this draft simply by going off the consensus top 100. I am pretty locked in for what I want in the first 3 rounds of this draft though. I do a lot of mocks and I can say with confidence, these mocks aren't going to be close to what the real draft looks like after the first few picks.

Let me explain that.... I feel like Ty Simpson will end up being extremely close to the top ten, if not ultimately in the top ten. There are too many teams like the Falcons that have that innate need to get a QB that they are willing to draft a Michael Penix Jr way too high. This works in our favor as long as we aren't that team to do it....

Sorry for the book... I tend to ramble on

Lol !

It was a good read !

This is something to pay close attention to!

The Alabama offensive line was ranked #1 in the country entering the 2025 season for the second year in a row with only their left guard(Tyler Booker drafted #12 overall in 2025) and right tackle (Elijah Pritchett left in the transfer portal) leaving. Their Left tackle Kadyn Proctor (expected first round draft pick), Center (most consider to be a top 5 center in the 2026 draft) and Guard Jaeden Roberts (expected mid-round draftee) are part of their elite offensive line. A lot of the blame on the sacks went to Simpson holding the ball too long... Something that was a huge part of our own Shedeur Sanders dropping all the way to the 5th round of the draft.

I don't see Simpson being a successful QB in the NFL within his first few seasons. He will need the ability to have time behind a veteran QB. Someone like the Rams(29th pick round 1) or Steelers (21st pick round 1) if Rodgers comes back in 2026 makes more sense for Simpson. I could actually see Simpson dropping to the bottom of the second round if one of these two teams do not take him in the first. I think his lack of experience will keep teams from reaching on him early in the draft.

Agreed, a very good read!

Third! I'm not a draft guru. I find players at certain positions that I study. They're usually already media darlings anyway. It's always nice to look under the hood of someone that does the work and relates it to the Browns. I view Downs as being on the cusp of that rare category of "generational talent". From that perspective, it would be really hard to pass on him. Irish makes a great case for why it's the right thing to do.

I think most of us have known for some time that need does enter into the equation in terms of a team setting their draft board. I mean you don't overlook someone who is much more highly rated than the person you draft but if it's close need always wins. You laid the case out for that quite well.


And while I would certainly love to see the OT position addressed with the first pick in the draft, you make a great case for why Carnell Tate is just as legitimate of a consideration. Thanks for you post.

Doesn't Delpit already play pretty close to the LoS? I would think we'd want a guy that was more comfortable playing further back, no?

Delpit is on the last year of his contract and many expect the Browns to replace him with a younger guy before he moves on. I don't know why, I actually like Delpit. I would rather re-sign the guy I know...

Browns owner Jimmy Haslam admitted in March 2025 that trading for Deshaun Watson was a "big swing and a miss," calling it a failed move.

I'm not sure but it sounds as if you're saying Haslam made the DW comments. The best I can figure out is he must be practicing for a future career in politics. You never know which story is going to fly out of his mouth from day to day.