B-
Cleveland Browns
The Browns checked most of the boxes and earned a B-.
by 26cgridley ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 2 steals
· 4 reaches
Nobody had Taylen Green this high, and it is not close. The Browns reached 44 spots to get him at slot 149.
If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through interior defensive lineman. Dixon at that cost is the sort of edge that compounds over a roster.
Quarterback was the priority and it is no longer a question, which is most of the job. Almost all the early capital went to that side of the ball.
Good work on the whole, with interior defensive lineman the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 6 they get a weapon on the perimeter at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
In Round 1, Pick 24 they get a blindside protector. A clean fit for the roster.
Fair-plus on Chris Johnson, a quiet win that adds up over a draft. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A conviction pick on Connor Lew at the 70th pick that the board grades a round light. It fills a real need, too.
They let Deion Burks come to them and pounced at slot 107. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A wild overpay on Nadame Tucker in pick No. 146, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Taylen Green in the Round 5 slot is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They barely believed it either: Thaddeus Dixon still on the board at the 248th pick. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They went early on Carver Willis in pick No. 257, and the value did not follow. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.