Cleveland Browns: PFF says it should, but won’t be Mayfield at No. 1
By Randy Gurzi
Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus says the Cleveland Browns should take Baker Mayfield at No. 1, but they will instead go Josh Allen or Sam Darnold
It looks like the idea of “football guy” being in the Cleveland Browns front office is swaying everyone’s opinion of what they will do at No. 1 overall in next week’s NFL Draft. The feeling is new general manager John Dorsey will be looking for a guy who fits the prototype of an NFL quarterback.
In the past, Cleveland was all about the numbers and analytics. If they were still going that route, Baker Mayfield out of Oklahoma should be the selection according to Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus.
Monson and fellow PFF analyst Steve Palazzolo discussed the Browns offseason and both agreed a quarterback will go first overall. They then got into a discussion about which signal caller should be taken and Monson says it’s clearly Mayfield.
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"”Everything we have in terms of college data suggests that he is head and shoulders above any other quarterback in this draft” — Monson said on their State of the Browns video via PFF.com"
From there Monson goes on to say Josh Allen out of Wyoming and Sam Darnold from USC both fit the mold of a passer that the “football guy” in Cleveland will want. Neither said those picks were bad players, but the general feeling was that Mayfield is the best performer at the position.
Mayfield surely has the talent, but his lack of height has been one of the things really hurting him. At 6-foot tall, there are doubts he can perform adequately at the next level.
Another issue has to be the personality of Mayfield. He comes across as arrogant and was arrested not too long ago for public intoxication and running from police.
Really though, the idea of a prototypical quarterback shouldn’t come into play. Dorsey has traded for Alex Smith and Tyrod Taylor during his time as an NFL general manager and neither fit the “prototype” Monson mentioned.
Next: Bucky Brooks a victim of confirmation bias
What will likely happen is the Browns will pick whoever they feel helps their team the most. After that, the numbers guys and football guys will then claim victory or laugh at the other for being wrong.