AFC Executive's Correct Take On Why Mason Graham Made Sense For Browns at No. 5

The Cleveland Browns had the ability to take a player many felt would be a sure-bet superstar in the NFL with pick No. 2 in the 2025 NFL Draft. Travis Hunter, a potential two-way phenom, was right there. As was the best EDGE rusher in the draft, Abdul Carter.

Instead, the Browns made a bold move and traded out of pick No. 2. The Jacksonville Jaguars moved up to select Hunter while the Browns moved back to No. 5 and collected multiple picks (including a first-rounder in 2026).

Cleveland selected Michigan defensive lineman Mason Graham at No. 5, and he's expected to hit the ground running in the NFL at 6-foot-3, 296 pounds. He notched 108 tackles (61 solo), nine sacks, and a forced fumble in three seasons in Ann Arbor. He's a disruptive force in the middle, so he was absolutely worth the pick. Not to mention, he's likely to do even more damage in the NFL playing beside another disruptor in Myles Garrett.

On Graham's merits alone, it was a solid pick by Cleveland.

One AFC executive believes there's an alternative reason that selecting Graham made sense for the Browns as well, though. In a recent insider piece by Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, this executive mentioned the financial advantages of having a young defensive lineman like Graham on a rookie deal.

"It's hard to pass on Travis [Hunter] or Abdul [Carter] at 2, but you get a good young defensive tackle [in Mason Graham]. That's a position that's really expensive now, so to get a rookie-scale player there is crucial," the AFC executive said, via Fowler.

To that point, the highest-paid defensive lineman in the NFL heading into 2025 is already on the Browns' roster. Garrett will be making $40 million this season in average salary. The highest paid defensive tackle is Chris Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs, who will be making $31.7 million this season.

Graham may not be able to disrupt an NFL offense like Garrett or Jones just yet, but he's going to be paid $840,000 in base salary this season as a rookie. The total amount of his rookie contract ($40.8 million) is basically the amount Garrett will be making just in 2025.

You can't have enough firepower on a defensive front, so this anonymous AFC executive is 100 percent right. Even if Graham can provide a modest impact for the Browns as a rookie, and let's assume he gets better with time and lives up to his draft positioning, he'll be a steal and quite a value moving forward.