4 early contenders for Cleveland Browns second round pick in 2023
By John Suchan
The Cleveland Browns have eight picks coming up in the NFL Draft in April. We’re still three months away from that but it’s never too early to start speculating who they might be interested in. It’s been well-documented that Cleveland doesn’t have a first-round pick this year, or next, due to the massive trade they made for Deshaun Watson. That means their first selection will come in the second-round pick at No. 43.
There are many positions the Browns need to address, including defensive tackle, wide, receiver, offensive lineman, linebacker, and safety. The consensus amongst most is that Cleveland might take a defensive tackle first because they’ve shown such poor defense against the run in previous seasons.
Of course, last year, the same expectation was thought, and the Browns surprised the world by taking Martin Emerson, a cornerback from Mississippi State with their first pick in Round 3. In that case, they actually moved back to take Emerson. That scenario could play out again in this year’s draft if Cleveland wants to pick up more draft picks for the weekend.
Let’s go ahead and take a look at four prospects that could contend for that No. 43 spot, assuming that the Browns hold onto that pick.
No. 4 Cleveland Browns draft prospect contender: Jaquelin Roy, DT, LSU
Cleveland likes players from LSU, so let’s kick off this list of contenders with Roy, a massive defensive tackle from the Tigers. He stands 6-4 and weighs 335 pounds. He takes up a lot of space in the interior of their defense and yet has the speed to get from side to side and create havoc in the backfield. The Browns drafted Perrion Winfrey from Oklahoma a year ago at defensive tackle and Roy could be another player added to the line who projects to have a promising future in the league.
Rot is expected to be drafted anywhere between the second and third rounds, and he looks like an attractive player for an organization that’s looking to fill up the holes in the run game. The one drawback to selecting a player like Roy could be his age as he’ll be 23 years old come next October. Cleveland likes younger players so we shall see if Roy jumps onto their radar.
Roy had a steady career at LSU as he finished with 97 tackles including 13.5 for losses and four sacks this past season. He had some really outstanding performances, including a game late in the season against Texas A&M where he scored a season-high 12 tackles and was heavily involved in the game.