Cleveland Browns Path To The Playoffs - Week 9

AFC Playoff Odds

Who do the sportbooks think is the Browns main competitor for the playoffs?

Rooting Guide For Key Games

I have broken these into three groups moving forward, the ones that are more likely than not to go how the Browns want, those that are possible and then the holding out for a miracle group.

Likely

Raiders @ 49ers (-9.5) - They are just on the cusp of being around the playoff race, it would be better to remove them and get it down to a race of 9 teams chasing 7 spots.

Possible

Bengals (-3.5) vs Falcons - They are the clear favorites for the division now, so an upset in Madrid would be massive the Browns.

Packers @ Patriots (-3.5) - They are in a great spot for the wildcard places, a win by Packers would be helpful as an NFC team.

Hoping For A Miracle

Texans (-5.5) @ Chargers - They have been really struggling but the Chargers turning over the Texans would be beneficial.

Current Draft Order

Here is the draft order within the league as things stand if the season ended today per Tankathon:

Odds For The First Overall Pick

Here are the odds for the the ten most likely teams to finish with the worst record. Each week I will track this so we can see teams entering and dropping out of the top ten too. Green shows most likely to get the first pick. Grey is outside the top ten that week. Red is the Browns odds if they are outside the top ten.

Browns 2027 Draft Picks

Here are the Cleveland Browns 2027 draft picks:

Round 1 (Browns)
Round 1 (Rams) - Myles Garrett trade

Round 2 (Browns)

Round 3 (Browns)

Round 4 (Browns)
Round 4 (Giants) - Draft trade
Round 4 (Seahawks) - Draft trade

Round 5 (Browns)
Round 5 (Texans) - Draft trade

(No 6th rounder, traded to the Texans for Cam Robinson)

Round 7 (Browns)
Round 7 (Texans or Chargers) - Cam Robinson trade

Consensus Draft Board

Here we will look at the top ten players on the NFL Mock Draft Database's Consensus Big Board:

1 - Jeremiah Smith, WR (Ohio State)
2 - Colin Simmons, EDGE (Texas)
3 - Drew Mestemaker, QB (Oklahoma State)
4 - Leonard Moore, CB (Notre Dame)
5 - Dylan Stewart, EDGE (South Carolina)
6 - Jordan Seaton, OT (LSU)
7 - Darian Mensah, QB (Miami)
8 - Charlie Becker, WR (Indiana)
9 - Will Echoles (Mississippi)
10 - CJ Carr (Notre Dame)

Here is a look at all of the quarterbacks in the top 100:

3 - Drew Mestemaker (Oklahoma State)
7 - Darian Mensah (Miami)
10 - CJ Carr (Notre Dame)
11 - Trinidad Chambliss (Mississippi)
16 - Arch Manning (Texas)
19 - Dante Moore (Oregon)
36 - Austin Simmons (Missouri)
42 - LaNorris Sellers (South Carolina)
54 - Jayden Maiava (USC)
92 - Conner Weigman (Houston)

Weekly Mock Draft

What I want to do each week is a day 1/2 mock draft based working off the current draft order so it changes more week to week. The players selected runs off the consensus big board on Mock Draft Database, no trades, no players sliding. As I always say with drafts, don't worry too much about them until free agency has happened but let's have some fun! Age is always a factor for me, so check out the latest 2027 Age Guardrails Draft Board, exclusively for OBR VIPs.

Round 1 (Rams) - #16 Arch Manning, QB (Texas)

I am going to go with Arch here, working on a hypothesis that Jimmy Haslam is selecting his quarterback here. Andrew Berry can plead that he shouldn't select another quarterback here but Haslam is buying into his vision for the team going into the new stadium. I see the Browns adding a veteran quarterback who can play the whole season, picking this late can't guarantee you that you are getting the player you want.

Round 1 (Browns) - #18 Xavier Gilliam, DT (Tennessee)

Despite extending Collins they take another defensive tackle in the draft. This will hopefully be a long term running partner with Graham. It is a rotational position so they can easily have three high performing defensive tackles with Huntington filling in the remaining snaps.

Round 2 (Browns) - #50 Will Heldt, ED (Clemson)

They add another defensive lineman. While they can keep adding talent elsewhere like tackles, who won't start in 2027 but can continue developing behind the starter. Instead they turn to a player who can ideally compete with the two starters, Verse and a free agent to battle for playing time.

Round 3 (Browns) - #90 Jalen Mayo, CB (Houston)

After drafting linebackers and running backs previously, Andrew Berry keeps a focus on premium positions with another cornerback. While Mayo might not start if he can't transition into the slot. Having a talented third boundary cornerback if Ward or Campbell are injured.