3 players the Cleveland Browns may regret passing on in 2022 NFL Draft

2022 NFL Draft prospects Cleveland Browns may regret passing on No. 1: John Metchie, WR

When the Browns were on the board at No. 44, they had some good options left to choose from. However, they elected not to take any of them as they made a trade with the Houston Texans, and added more picks — while dropping completely out of the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft.

It was a frustrating thing for fans after they already had to sit back and watch as the Browns were without a pick in Round 1 — and will be without one in 2023 and 2024 as well — thanks to the Deshaun Watson trade. Some have forgotten about the move, especially after how well they did with the picks they had, but there’s still one player they might regret skipping out on at No. 44  — John Metchie III.

As fate would have it, the Texans ended up taking Metchie with that very pick, adding the talented Alabama wideout to their receiving corps. Metchie is coming off a torn ACL and was overshadowed by Jameson Williams, which is why he fell into Round 2. However, there was a time during the 2021 season that he looked to be among the top wideouts in this class.

He’s an incredibly smooth route runner that could develop into a No. 1 receiver down the road, and pairing him with Amari Cooper would have given Cleveland a potentially lethal combination. As it stands now, they’re banking on Donovan Peoples-Jones to take a step forward with Deshaun Watson under center — with David Bell serving as the third receiver.

However, they could have looked much better with Cooper and Metchie as the starters and DPJ serving the role as the third wideout.

And if Metchie goes on to become a perennial 1,000-yard receiver, the Browns might really start to regret not taking him.