Cleveland Browns: Investigating the Front Office

May 9, 2014; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns first round draft picks Justin Gilbert (Oklahoma State) and Johnny Manziel (Texas A&M) are introduced to the media with head coach Mike Pettine (left) and general Manager Ray Farmer (left) at the Cleveland Browns Headquarters. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

That leaves the four first round picks that Farmer has made in the past two seasons. A source of significant frustration for fans and media, the struggles of Justin Gilbert and Johnny Manziel have put unrealistic expectations on Danny Shelton and Cameron Erving. Not even halfway through their rookie season, there are people willing to say Shelton and Erving are already busts. When compared to the rest of the first round in the 2015 NFL Draft, the limited impact of Shelton and Erving is pretty consistent with what the rest of the teams have gotten to this point.

Shelton’s struggles to make the transition to NFL competition is problematic and been slower than expected (by his own admission), especially with how well he looked like he could be in training camp and preseason, but it does not make him a bust. The improvements Shelton has to make include both technique as well as physical such as his ankle flexibility to help improve his pad level are issues he has to fix. Shelton has to dedicate himself to address those issues and if his effort level is indicative of how hard he will attack them in the coming offseason, the Browns should end up being happy with their selection.

Erving was selected as a sixth man on the offensive line. There were plenty who were insistent that he would immediately start because of his draft status but they discounted how technically raw he still was as well as what the Browns already had – specifically John Greco. Athletically gifted but still relatively new to learning the offensive line in terms of his technique, understanding angles, spacing and landmarks, Erving was not a plug and play pick. The Browns knew that when they picked him and are hopeful he can improve to become a franchise type offensive lineman. With the possibility the Browns could lose both Alex Mack and Mitchell Schwartz in the upcoming offseason as well as the 12 point per game drop-off after Mack went down for the season last year, the methodology for selecting Erving was obvious. And if both stay, Erving could just end up learning and beating out Greco for the right guard spot, giving them a terrific set of guards and having depth.

The idea that because Erving did not and is not starting makes him a miss or that the Browns made a mistake in picking someone who is not starting now is ridiculous. If Erving needs time to develop and becomes a stud offensive lineman, no one will care that he needed some time to get there. In the event Erving is simply not good, that is where the issue is.

I’m willing to believe that Jimmy Haslam gave more than a little nudge to Ray Farmer to pick Johnny Manziel. The reason I believe it is that Haslam has been enamored with stars and after Manziel was picked, the focus immediately became moving training camp in an effort to maximize profit off of people wanting to see him. That talk is still going on, though far less public, since Manziel fell on his face against the Bengals and then went to rehab.

I think Farmer liked Manziel, but I think he liked Derek Carr and Teddy Bridewater too.  The business side of the organization, including but not limited to Haslam, saw star and earning power, and did everything they could to convince Farmer the issues Manziel had were smaller than they were and the strengths were greater.

I believe that Mike Pettine was influential in the decision to select Justin Gilbert. A player (I had as a 4^th rounder) that possessed the spectacular physical attributes that could make him into an elite corner. The problem was that Gilbert had no clue how to play corner, as was clear when he was at Oklahoma State. Being a coach, Pettine and his staff saw a player with the physical tools to become a franchise corner and thought as so many coaches do, “I can fix him. I can be the one that makes it work.”

Maybe Gilbert still can be what they envision, but as with Manziel, I have no qualms with anyone saying that the Browns missed on those two first round picks in a class littered with terrific talent. If they eventually find their way and become the players they were drafted to be, it took a while but the playoff was worth it. In the here and now, they look like disasters that wasted enormous opportunities to improve the talent on the roster.

Next: Ignore the noise