Don’t do it, Cleveland Browns. I’m begging you, don’t screw this up. Don’t try and outsmart the room. Not again.
I, as well as many others, have been clamoring for the Browns to finally stop over-thinking the draft process and take defensive end Myles Garrett No.1 overall in a couple weeks. Cleveland lacks talent across the board, therefore the concept of “pick the best player with the top pick” shouldn’t be too hard to comprehend.
Yet, I’ve also spent the past few weeks fearing the Browns will once again add to their history of draft blunders. Despite numerous writers, both national and local, insisting you can pencil Garrett in as Cleveland’s top pick, I just won’t believe it until his name is called on draft night.
If you’re wondering why I won’t accept the idea of Garrett being a Brown until he’s holding up the jersey, look no further than the update we received last night from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who set Twitter ablaze with just two tweets.
First, Schefter claimed to be told by an NFL exec “Don’t be surprised if Myles Garrett isn’t the No. 1 pick.” This obviously set off alarms within Cleveland’s fan-base. Schefter then added context, claiming the Browns’ front office is split, with some wanting Garrett and others wanting quarterback Mitch Trubisky.
If this is indeed an argument being had within the Browns’ draft war room, it should be pretty simple to come to a conclusion. Garrett is worth the No.1 overall pick, Trubisky is not.
This shouldn’t be read as any sort of dig on the former UNC quarterback. He’s certainly talented, with many claiming he’s the best available QB in this year’s class. Nothing he’s done in the pre-draft process has dissuaded any of this belief.
He’s just not someone who should be considered going first overall.
Just as none of the positives about Trubisky have changed, neither have any of his red flags. He still only has one season of college ball under his belt. He’s still seen as raw. He still isn’t viewed by anyone as a player who can start right away.
Knowing this, it’s difficult to see Trubisky as someone worthy of the top pick in the draft. The No.1 selection needs to be utilized on the player who’s considered a sure-thing, a true can’t-miss prospect. While Garrett certainly fits this bill, Trubisky doesn’t.
Consider, too, what taking Trubisky first overall would say about the front office’s QB evaluating skills.
We’re a year removed from the team being skewered for passing on Carson Wentz and claiming he wasn’t a top 20 quarterback. To spend the top overall pick on Trubisky, who’s seen as a reach at No.1, is telling the NFL world the Browns feel as though he’ll be far more successful than Wentz. While the Philadelphia Eagles QB had an up-and-down rookie season, he certainly looks as though he has a solid career ahead of him.
It’s a lot of pressure to put on both Trubisky and the team itself, especially noting the fact many feel as though Cleveland screwed up in passing on Wentz.
Of course, there’s a chance this latest rumor is a smokescreen, a way to keep everyone on their toes due to the fact numerous reports claim Garrett going first overall is a near-certainty. For the Browns’ sake, I hope this is the case. A team which has spent the past few decades making a litany of laughable draft picks is in no position to make a questionable call at No.1.
If this isn’t smoke and mirrors, though, if Cleveland ends up taking Trubisky first overall and he excels, I’ll more than happily eat crow on this claim.
However, every write-up on the former Tar Heel lists him as the best available quarterback who’s also a raw prospect who won’t be ready to help early in the 2017 season, if at all.
Read that and convince me he’s also worth the first overall pick.
Casey Drottar is an independent sports writer. Follow him on Twitter or Facebook