The Cleveland Browns have come under fire for their 2025 NFL Draft class, but what they actually did was quite genius. Many people questioned the Cleveland Browns decision to not only trade down from the no. 2 overall spot and miss out on Travis Hunter, but also them taking two quarterbacks and two running backs as apart of their class.
But when you break it all down, it was some genius drafting by Andrew Berry and the front office
The Browns are playing the long game...
Cleveland seemed to correctly identify that there was no legitimate franchise QB available to them in the 2025 NFL Draft, as they obviously were not landing Cam Ward. Them trading down three spots with the Jacksonville Jaguars did net them the Jags first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft,
Despite missing out on Hunter, Cleveland still netted a blue-chip talent in Mason Graham, who plays a more valuable position and can help the Browns solidify the trenches. Them also taking two RBs in Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson will help them establish the run more, and being able to establish the run and win the line of scrimmage is how teams win games and establish and identity.
And them taking two QBs in Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders still does give them double the chance at finiding a franchise QB - teams should absolutely take multiple QBs every single NFL Draft until they find their long-term answer.
I understand that folks want to make fun of the Browns NFL Draft class, but let's take a deep breath here. For the long-term view of this team, many of their moves made a lot of sense. They knew they weren't going to compete for much in 2025, and were able to set the stage for 2026, which is when this team could reset itself and put their franchise back on the map.