The 10 biggest what-ifs in Cleveland Browns history
The Cleveland Browns have many regrets as a franchise. What if they could change some of them?
Hindsight is always, 20/20, isn't it? It's easy to sit here and say you would have done things differently after the fact, but the unfortunate reality of the Cleveland Browns is, many people saw the error of the decision-making from this franchise from a hundred miles away. Over the last handful of decades, the Cleveland Browns have made one regrettable decision after another.
What if they could go back and do things differently? Or what if they had done things differently? It's impossible to know the Butterfly Effect of one changed decision, but it can also be very interesting to think about.
While there is optimism that the Cleveland Browns could be good here in the 2023 season, let's take a look at some of the biggest "what ifs" throughout the franchise's history.
10 biggest what-ifs in Cleveland Browns history
10. What if the Browns could re-do the 2014 NFL Draft?
The Cleveland Browns would probably re-do a lot of NFL Drafts if they could. Maybe more than just about any other NFL team, as a matter of fact. But what if this team could re-do the 2014 NFL Draft? Well, knowing what we know now, they'd certainly love to have a do-over here.
The Browns used the 8th overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft on Oklahoma State cornerback Justin Gilbert. Gilbert is known as an NFL Draft bust at this point, but that selection by the Browns was followed by nine straight eventual Pro Bowl players selected by other teams. The popular thing is to say the Browns could have taken Aaron Donald with that 8th overall pick, which they could have, but the reality is that there was a variety of options there for the taking, and the Browns just missed out.
Not only were nine Pro Bowl players selected in nine consecutive picks after the Browns picked Gilbert at 8 overall, but the team traded up to draft Johnny Manziel at pick no. 22 overall when the next two quarterbacks selected (Teddy Bridgewater to the Vikings at 32; Derek Carr to the Raiders at 36) have also been Pro Bowl players.