Cleveland Browns: Top 10 moves to right the ship over the past three years
By Randy Gurzi
9. Drafting David Njoku
In the 2017 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns made three picks in the first-round as they hoped to bring in a massive haul of talent. With their final pick in that round — No. 29 overall — they made a move by trading back into the first-round for Miami tight end David Njoku.
This move was big not just for the talent that Njoku has, but what it could mean for the quarterback of the team, even if they weren’t sure who that was going to be when they picked Njoku.
Getting a player like the physical freak Njoku will help any quarterback by giving them a player to lean on for passes near the line of scrimmage. That’s not all he can do though as Njoku is an athletic freak that can get downfield as well.
Related Story: Njoku named No. 9 TE in NFL
As a rookie Njoku was good and put himself in some elite category with his production. George Stockburger of NFL Mocks explains how good his rookie season was, even without there being a star signal caller getting him the ball.
"“As a rookie Njoku became the fifth tight end in NFL history to record 30 receptions, 300 yards at age 21 season, joining Tony Gonzalez, Rob Gronkowski, Jason Witten, and Aaron Hernandez.” — Stockburger, NFL Mocks"
Considering how hard the tight end position can be for rookies this is an encouraging stat. At just 22-years old, he will only get better from there.