Cleveland Browns: Rams Trade Up – Now What?
By Peter Smith
The Cleveland Browns find themselves behind the Los Angeles Rams in the NFL Draft, but while the Rams are a mystery, how the Browns react is pretty clear.
The Los Angeles Rams have nuked the 2016 NFL Draft landscape with a historic trade that had them go from the 15th pick in the draft to the 1st pick in the draft. All of a sudden, the Cleveland Browns’ pick is in flux as what went from a pretty easy situation to calculate has gotten a lot more complicated.
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The Tennessee Titans were all but a lock to take Laremy Tunsil, the offensive tackle from Ole Miss, but were trying to move down and still get their man. While they are not getting Tunsil, short of another trade back up, they can still get an offensive tackle if that’s what they want.
Meanwhile, the Browns went from having their pick of the top quarterbacks in this class, assuming they liked believed in either as a franchise starter, to being in a situation where they will be left to decide if the passer the Rams don’t pick is the right guy for them.
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For unfathomable reasons, some in the national media have suggested this makes the Browns’ decision much easier. The Browns would simply take whichever quarterback is left. That sounds great unless the Browns had their heart set on Carson Wentz and the Rams take him. They might not like Jared Goff or vice versa. They are much different quarterbacks from a style standpoint and how each of them win.
It is possible that the Browns like both and would cater their offense to the style of either one. That doesn’t seem terribly likely but nevertheless, it could happen.
Every 15 minutes it seems like another report comes out saying the Rams are leaning one way or the other, so let’s look at the arguments for each without getting into the meaningless noise that is ‘making a splash’ or picking a quarterback because he’s from the same state, which happens to be the size of the Eastern Seaboard.
It’s not easy to give up a total of 5 picks in the form of a 1st, 2 2nds and 2 3rd round picks over the next 2 years and then have that player sit. It might be the prudent play to do it, but it’s difficult to realize, especially since part of the impetus for the move is that Head Coach Jeff Fisher and General Manager Les Snead need this to work for the sake of their jobs. They pushed all of their chips to the middle of the table with this move.
If the newly reestablished Los Angeles version of the Rams come out and limp to another sub .500 season, Stan Kroenke may see this organization as an extremely attractive job with what would be a 2nd year quarterback, a potential star running back in Todd Gurley and a defense with talent.
So, bearing all of that in mind, the Rams may be eager to get the quarterback that appears capable of starting the earliest. That would be Jared Goff. He may not hit the ground running but his excellent pocket awareness and ability to execute on offense could enable them to operate largely behind Gurley and the running game with play action and quick passing that could do enough offensively to improve and potentially get them into the playoffs.
The biggest argument against Goff may simply be that he is too similar to Sam Bradford. Bradford obviously struggled to stay healthy while Goff has been remarkably durable in his career and may have a mentality more in tune with Fisher. Nevertheless, stylistically, he plays a lot like Bradford does, whom Fisher and Snead sent to Philadelphia.
With Wentz, he’s more of traditional quarterback than Goff with his size, arm strength and athleticism. Obviously, Wentz having played at North Dakota State and only playing 23 games in his career, he’s far less ready to play from day 1. Even his college head coach suggested that Wentz shouldn’t start right away.
Perhaps Fisher would take a similar approach with Wentz that the Pittsburgh Steelers did with Ben Roethlisberger and try to have the rest of the team carry him until he’s ready. The Steelers carried Roethlisberger to the AFC Championship as a rookie with minimal responsibility. The Rams aren’t nearly in the position as those Steelers were to carry Wentz, but it’s an option.
If Wentz can’t pick it up quickly, the Rams dig themselves an early hole they can’t get out of and Fisher and Snead are fired for it. Wentz has more upside than Goff, seemingly, but Goff appears far readier to start fast and get Rams to a quicker start, which may be too important to pass up.
That’s the Rams’ decision in a nutshell.
Now, the impact of the Browns is a matter of opinion. Personally, I am of the belief the Browns have been locked in on Wentz basically the entire draft process. He’s a better fit for what Hue Jackson wants for his offense.
Jackson has a history of going with big, strong, athletic quarterbacks. He also emphasized the importance of a quarterback’s hand size within the AFC North. Wentz has big mitts while Goff’s 9” could be a big problem in the cold and wind of the AFC North climate.
Additionally, the Browns do not need a quarterback to start right away. They obviously signed Robert Griffin III and still have Josh McCown, who can both start and be effective. McCown has also volunteered his services as a mentor, which is also valuable. In that spectrum, there’s certainly an argument for going with more upside and sheer potential if Jackson is confident himself as a coach and molder of quarterbacks, especially with the time to do it.
Obviously, if the Browns did take Goff, he could sit behind Griffin, McCown or both as well, but it would appear to be more of a straight up competition to see who could win the job as opposed to a specific plan, given Griffin’s short contract.
For me, if the Rams take Goff, the Browns should take Wentz. If the Rams take Wentz, if the Browns have a good trade offer on the table, go ahead and take it. Otherwise, they should select DeForest Buckner, the defensive lineman from Oregon.
The prototype, ideal 5-technique defensive end for Ray Horton’s defensive scheme, Buckner along with Danny Shelton drafted 13th overall last year and John Hughes, the Browns should be in position to have an excellent defensive line that could be critical in the improvement of the defense overall.
Buckner, a gifted athlete, record 17 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks and 5 pass deflections at his final season at Oregon. The hope is that he could provide the type of impact Calais Campbell has provided for the Arizona Cardinals the past 8 seasons. Campbell, the 6’8” 300lb end for the Cardinals, has similar traits and athleticism as Buckner and has provided a talented run defender who provides an average of almost 7 sacks per season in his last 7 years in the league.
Much like Desmond Bryant, who has 11 sacks over the past 2 years, pressure on the inside from a player like Buckner or Bryant opens up more opportunities out wide. The quarterback can’t step up in the pocket as easily or is flushed out of the pocket into pressure from the outside linebackers.
The problem with Bryant is he’s a mediocre run defender and he tends to get hurt with nothing for depth behind him. Bryant is a nice player and a valuable player that could be utilized more effectively if a player like Buckner can do the heavy lifting. The hope is that like Campbell in Arizona, Buckner is an impact player. Someone opposing teams fear and scheme to stop.
In the event the Browns trade out of the 2nd pick, depending on where they end up, they should target Paxton Lynch, the quarterback from Memphis. Lynch, like Wentz, needs to sit and be developed but offers incredible potential if it can be harnessed effectively. Lynch possesses a similar build and athletic ability as Joe Flacco, but might be more fluid.
Lynch is reminiscent of a small forward in the NBA in just how well and effortless he can move. He also has a huge arm and showed in games this season, such as Ole Miss, that he can put a team on his back and dominate a big opponent. It would be a great situation for the Browns to have Griffin, McCown and Lynch just as it would be with Wentz. I like Wentz better but Lynch is easy to like as a quarterback prospect.
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From my standpoint, it would be disappointing if the Browns were unable to get Carson Wentz, but in the event they don’t, DeForest Buckner or Paxton Lynch and a pick or few would be excellent alternatives. The Rams have to make the decision on which path the Browns should take, but those are the best options as I see them. It remains to be seen if the Cleveland Browns agree.