3 Senior Bowl defensive tackle standouts the Cleveland Browns should target

1. Keeanu Benton, DT, Wisconsin

Easily one of my favorite prospects in this class, not just the Senior Bowl, has been Keeanu Benton from Wisconsin. Standing 6-foot-4 and weighing 317 pounds, Benton is a powerful nose tackle that does exactly what the Browns need — he shuts down the running game.

Of course, in typical nose tackle fashion, his effect on the game doesn’t always show up on the stat sheet. Instead, his power and ability to draw double teams are what clogs the lanes while also freeing up the linebackers to come in and make the play.

We all saw how much Cleveland’s defensive line struggled in this regard as they were often pushed back seven yards or more and the linebackers were being blown up by offensive linemen in the second level.

That won’t happen with Benton, who is an explosive player that also plays with a mean streak.

Of course, the Browns have shown in the past that they want their defensive tackles to get after the quarterback. Unfortunately, this is the one area where Benton falls short. He did record 4.5 sacks for the Badgers this past season but he’s not likely going to get close to that in the NFL without some work.

Cleveland should be willing to overlook this because it makes no sense to load up on pass rushers when there’s no one there to force the defense into obvious passing situations. Benton’s ability to shut out the running game on first and second down would free things up for players such as Myles Garrett to pin their ears back and make the splash plays.

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