If the Browns can’t trade down, maybe they should just pass for a while and then pick later.  This is the conclusion that I am aiming to prove.  Now, I know that isn’t really the proper way to go about doing analysis.  Still, this is the burgeoning philosophy that has been forming in my brain for the last few years.  And it is a natural conclusion for a Browns fan.  Tim Couch, Courtney Brown and Gerard Warren are exhibits A-C.

Obviously it is easy to take the other side of the argument as well.  Joe Thomas was taken high in the first round and has been worth every penny of his top-five draft money.  But, unless you see another Joe Thomas surefire, slam dunk draft pick on the board, you are asking for trouble drafting that high because of the contract demands.  I would argue that there isn’t a surefire pick in this year’s draft.  There is no quarterback that I am dying to have.  There isn’t another offensive tackle that I am dying to have.  Maybe I am ignorant, but Orakpo and Curry don’t even blow my mind.  Crabtree is probably the closest thing to a sure thing from what I can see, and that seems too high to take a wide receiver, even for these receiving-challenged Browns.

Obviously, the real goal is to trade down, but what if that opportunity doesn’t present itself?  Should the Browns be unable to trade down, would it be worthwhile to just pass on the number five pick and wait a few picks and pick lower where the risk / reward ratio is a bit more balanced? [Read more...]