Round 1: Braylon Edwards, WR
6-3, 211 pounds, #3 overall
So now we’ve got to root for someone from Michigan? Seriously? Edwards is tall, fast, strong and smart, plus all indications are he’s a down-to-earth kid who won’t be rocking any boats anytime soon. He will, however, make every Browns fan forget that he was a Wolverine very soon.
Round 2: Brodney Pool, S
6-2, 208 pounds, #34 overall
This guy is a player, and yes I realize that I wasn’t exactly thrilled about this pick initially. He’s got a little bit of everything – good size, good speed, solid tackler – plus he comes out of the Oklahoma program, which is always a bonus. Early reports indicate that the Browns may look to move Pool to corner, but wherever he ends up he’ll be a playmaker for several years.
Round 3: Charlie Frye, WR
6-4, 217 pounds, #67 overall
So much for the Luke McCown era. You’ve got to love the hometown angle here but even better, Frye has all the tools to be a quality NFL quarterback, beginning with his size and toughness. And these days, playing for a MAC team isn’t necessarily a bad thing, at least not if you’re a quarterback. Frye-to-Edwards and Frye-to-Winslow could be magical connections in two or three years.
Round 4: Antonio Perkins, CB
5-11, 188 pounds, #103 overall
He needs to hit the weights but this kid can flat out fly, being clocked at 4.31 in the 40. That speed should get him on the field in some nickel and dime packages as a rookie but he’ll also be able to showcase his electrifying skills on special teams. Perkins’ return ability coupled with the Braylon Edwards pick makes you question Dennis Northcutt’s future with the Browns.
Round 5: David McMillan, DE
6-3, 246 pounds, #139 overall
McMillan was a quality pass rusher for Virginia and in Romeo Crennel’s new 3-4 defense, that’s what he’ll be expected to do. He’s a little small and scouts questioned his passion for the game leading up to the draft, but Phil Savage must’ve seen something he liked here.
Round 6: Nick Speegle, OLB
6-6, 250 pounds, #176 overall
Dude’s got an awesome name, plus his former teammates and coaches compare him to Jack Lambert and Dick Butkus. Sounds good to me. Could be a nice steal for Savage.
Round 6: Andrew Hoffman, DT
6-4, 296 pounds, #203 overall
Chosen with the pick acquired in the McCown trade, Hoffman could be a serviceable nose tackle in the 3-4 defense, though he’ll likely just add depth to the Browns’ depleted defensive line for a year or two.
Round 7: Jon Dunn, OT
6-7, 328 pounds, #217 overall
He’s big and he plays tackle. That’s about all you need to know for now.
The Browns did exactly what they need to do – they had a solid draft. Most of the experts are grading them out at a B or B+. Edwards can be a star, and the Pool pick is a great indication that Savage is serious when he says that he will go with the best possible player. Frye is definitely an exciting pick at #3. The Browns didn’t reach to take him with the #2 pick, and they were fortunate that he was still on the board at #3. It’s unfortunate that they were not able to take a tackle a little higher, but thy were able to stockpile much-needed bodies for the defense. I feel really good about the secondary. The Perkins pick was another example of Savage taking the best player over position. Perkins had some injury issues last year and many seem to think has first-day talent.
My favorite picks, aside from Edwards of course, are Frye and Speegle. Speegle’s huge and he’s quick, and he should team nicely with Andre Davis, while Frye looks like the real deal. We’ll see Dilfer for a year or two but then it’ll be Frye’s team.
Plus, the two Oklahoma defensive backs are going to be good, especially Pool. With Pool, Gary Baxter and maybe Sean Jones anchoring the secondary for the next several years, things are starting to look up on that side of the ball.
It’s really interesting to hear Savage talk about this draft. He said he was “pleased” and now I hear him on the radio saying that it’s getting harder to steal players in the draft because there are other teams out there who now seem to know what they’re doing. He also said it’s frustrating to watch your draft board get wiped out by other teams.
I think they have to be happy with this draft, but they clearly had some players in their sites that they were not able to land. For example, they tried hard to trade up for David Pollack only to see the Bungles grab him. There are certainly others that we’ll never know about. That probably explains why they took the defensive backs – their players at the other positions of need were probably taken.
Going into the draft, they wanted to address depth on the offensive and defensive lines. Unfortunately these areas were not addressed until the sixth and seventh rounds. As a result they have to get creative now with rookie and veteran free agents to beef up these areas.