Report: ‘Belief’ is the Cleveland Browns will select Jeffery Simmons

The Cleveland Browns could go a number of directions in the 2019 NFL Draft, but there is reportedly ‘belief’ they will select Jeffery Simmons in the first round.

The Cleveland Browns are in the lowest draft position in the NFL Draft that they have been in for several years, making their first selection at 17th overall.

No one knows what position Browns general manager John Dorsey is targeting in the draft, or for that matter, in free agency.

However, Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com reported on Monday in his post-Super Bowl mock draft that he is hearing from a “terrific” source that the Browns are targeting Mississippi State defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons with their first round draft selection.

More from Dawg Pound Daily

• How the Browns could maximize Nick Chubb in 2023
• Can Deshaun Watson get to Patrick Mahomes level for Cleveland Browns?
• 3 Cleveland Browns who should see an expanded role in 2023 and 1 who should not
• Is Marcus Davenport on the Browns radar in 2023?
• 5 Free agents from Super Bowl LVII Cleveland Browns should target

"I may demand a mulligan on this pick, but a terrific source tells me the belief is that Brown general manager John Dorsey will select Simmons. I’ll have more on the Mississippi State defensive tackle Wednesday. – Tony Pauline"

If there is one position that seems like a sure bet the Browns will target in the draft is defensive tackle. The entire defense struggled at stopping the run last season, and Cleveland needs another defensive tackle to pair with Larry Ogunjobi.

Who that defensive tackle will be is anyone’s guess. But Pauline is hearing from an apparently reliable source that it will be Simmons. In order for that to happen, Simmons is obviously going to need to stay on the board long enough for the Browns select him.

And that could be a possibility due to Simmons having an off-field issue early in his Mississippi State career. In 2016, a video surfaced of Simmons reportedly striking a woman. He was charged with a simple assault and was suspended one game. Some teams may not be comfortable with a player that has any history like that.

However, Simmons did not have an issue since then and he became an incredibly productive player on the Mississippi State defense. In his final season with the Bulldogs, Simmons made 63 total tackles, 18 tackles for loss, two sacks, and one forced fumble. He had a career high five sacks in 2017.

If Simmons does make it to 17, it would make a lot of sense for the Browns to select him. But to say in the first week of February that he is the player the Browns are targeting in the draft could be a little aggressive.

Dorsey is one of the best in the league at keeping everything to himself. He does well at stopping leaks from getting out of the building so that no one around the league knows what he is doing.

For instance, look at the 2018 NFL Draft. Despite having the first overall selection, the expectation was that Dorsey would select Sam Darnold. The reports about Baker Mayfield being the selection didn’t surface until a day before the draft.

This is not to say that Pauline’s source is wrong. It just seems very early to say that Simmons is the guy that the Browns plan on selecting in the first round. For the most part, the Browns draft evaluations likely are not close to being finished with the Combine and pro days still needing to happen.

Simmons would be a great selection if the Browns select him in the first round. He fills a need and was extremely productive in college. And Dorsey has not shied away from players with a checkered past, so there are dots that could connect Simmons to the Browns. We will just have to wait and see if Pauline’s source is correct.