B+
Cleveland Browns
The Browns fleeced the room on the phones and earned a B+.
by TimBro59 ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 0 steals
· 5 reaches
If confidence were a draft strategy, the Browns would have aced it. Will Kacmarek at pick No. 248 is 65 spots clear of where he belonged.
They won the margins on every swap, and it adds up fast. They will regret leaving edge rusher for another day if the season turns on it.
Adding DaRon Bland by trade rounds out the weekend beyond the rookies. On the needs board they went 5 of 9, with quarterback the one that mattered most.
In sum, a sturdy weekend with one asterisk, the edge rusher spot they never got to.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 12th pick they get a true top target. The biggest hole, addressed.
In the 16th overall pick they get protection for the quarterback, even if it was a touch early. A clean fit for the roster.
Chris Johnson at No. 39 is a sensible buy, a touch better than market for the cornerback. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Jacob Rodriguez in slot 70 is fair value, right on his grade. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
Jalon Kilgore at pick 107 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A tidy little value on CJ Daniels in the Round 5 slot, a step better than break-even. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Taylen Green at pick No. 149 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Red Murdock at No. 177 is a conviction pick that outran the value. Nice player, but the depth chart did not need him here.
They paid a round early for Jeremiah Wright in the Round 6 slot, more than the board wanted. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
A real head-scratcher, Will Kacmarek in pick 248 is miles ahead of his ranking. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.