Cleveland Browns don’t have a Round 1 pick in the NFL Draft, so they’ll sit back and watch the rest of the AFC North add talent early on.
Round 1 of the draft is the key point to add talent in the draft and where it is at its highest. Cleveland has done a good job of drafting well in the middle rounds recently.
In the first round, a few players stand out that the Browns don’t want to see added to the division elsewhere. While the Browns don’t have a chance to add these three players, having to line up against them isn’t ideal.
Georgia TE Brock Bowers to the Cincinnati Bengals
Lining up against the Bengals is consistently a headache mainly because of the presence of Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins. Adding in another pass-catching threat to the talent level of Bowers? That’s scary.
Bowers likely goes earlier than pick No. 18 but if he is there I think the Bengals undoubtedly pull the trigger. Sure, they have bigger needs. But the luxury of adding an athletic, super-productive talent would be silly to turn down for that offense.
Georgia OT Amarius Mims to the Pittsburgh Steelers
Mims has huge boom-or-bust potential with his lack of experience and some injury concerns. Still, many around the league believe that Mims has the highest potential in this draft class and that he could end up being elite.
Last year, the Steelers added his former teammate Broderick Jones. Adding Mims this year would give them a longtime starter at tackle. If he can stay on the field, I have no doubt the athletic tackle ends up a very good one.
Texas WR Xavier Worthy to the Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens don’t pick until the back end of the first round and there are a couple different ways they could go with the pick. Offensive tackle and an edge rusher both make sense but the player that should fear teams most is Worthy.
The fastest player in the draft joining a team with Lamar Jackson at quarterback is a problem. This isn’t a John Ross situation, Worthy can stick in the NFL. He will get open in Todd Monken’s offense and him with Zay Flowers is an intriguing duo.
More must-reads: