3 likely targets at each pick for the Cleveland Browns in the NFL Draft

Round 3, Pick 85 overall

1. Kiran Amegadjie, OT, Yale

If there is one player in this 2024 NFL Draft class that makes sense as a target for this Cleveland Browns front office, it is Yale offensive tackle Kiran Amegadjie. Not only does he check the boxes for age and athleticism, but he also hails from the Ivy League, just as Berry, chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta, and head coach Kevin Stefanski.

Ask any Browns fan what they think about the play from the left tackle position over the last couple of years and you will see why this position is viewed as such a need in Cleveland. While the team picked up the fifth-year option of 2020 first-round draft pick Jedrick Wills Jr., it's hard to imagine he earns a long-term deal unless his level of play (and health) improves greatly in 2024.

The Browns have solid tackles on the roster with Wills, veteran Jack Conklin, 2023 breakout star Dawand Jones, swing tackle James Hudson, and veteran free agent additions Hakeem Adeniji and Germaine Ifedi, but none are a sure thing as the future blindside protector for Deshaun Watson. It would make sense for this analytical front office to have already crunched these numbers and to try to stay a step ahead by adding the fellow Ivy Leaguer.

Amegadjie is still a very raw prospect, coming from a "lower-level" program compared to, say, Wills coming out of Alabama with SEC experience. It is hard to project how he will play at the highest level, but he certainly seems to have the tools to do so.

With his size (6-foot-5, 325 pounds), athleticism, and power, Amegadjie excelled at left tackle as well as right guard for the Bulldogs. That experience and versatility could help early in his professional career when needed as a fill-in while being groomed to be that franchise left tackle for years to come potentially.

2. Mekhi Wingo, DL, LSU

Mekhi Wingo is another defensive lineman who still fits the bill with the guardrails for the Browns but is built very differently than Michael Hall Jr. While Hall is a big and long player looking to fill out his frame at the next level, Wingo is shorter and more compact, but still quite the athlete. Like Hall, Wingo excels with his first step off the snap, beating the blocker to the spot and putting himself in position to make a play.

With his size and style of play, Wingo is a little reminiscent of Pittsburgh defensive lineman Calijah Kancey who was drafted in the first round last year by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While he isn't quite the athlete that Kancey is, I think Wingo can hold his own a little better in the run game.

He may not have as high of a ceiling as someone like Kancey, or another "smaller" defensive tackle like Aaron Donald, but he is well-rounded and can contribute right away in the defensive line rotation for Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz.

3. Jaylen Wright, RB, Tennessee

Cleveland Browns fan-favorite, Nick Chubb, recently restructured his contract, pretty much securing his spot on the roster in 2024 and giving him a chance to earn his "pay-cut" in guarantees back in incentives based on his performance on the field. As hopeful as the team and the fanbase are for Chubb and his return, the team is smart to have multiple contingency plans in place, just in case things don't go exactly how everyone hopes.

For this season, I think the front office did a great job of making sure the team will be okay until Chubb can come back. Jerome Ford returns as likely the lead horse in the running back stable to start the season, after a very solid 2023 season once he was thrust into a larger role following Chubb's injury. They also added proven veterans in D'Onta Foreman and Nyheim Hines to fill complementary roles. Foreman can be a workhorse back, if needed, but will likely be more of a short-yardage, goal-line back, while Hines is a third-down, receiving specialist, who also brings a lot to the return game.

So while the room has four very capable backs once Chubb is back, the future of the position is still a bit of a question mark. Foreman and Hines are on one-year deals and, like it or not, we really don't know what the future has in store for Chubb. If the Browns want to add another solid option that can bring an extra dynamic to the running back spot moving forward, Jaylen Wright will likely be their target.

He comes from the University of Tennessee, just like Owner Jimmy Haslam, so he surely has a leg up on the competition in the opinion of ownership. With the front office, he is just 21 years old with an extraordinary 9.82 RAS. That incredible athleticism and explosiveness is evident on tape. He runs away from entire defenses, in the SEC no less. He explodes through the hole, is shifty in the open field, and has homerun speed to find paydirt.

Playing mostly from the shotgun in Josh Heupel's offense, he will fit right in with what Stefanski and new Offensive Coordinator Ken Dorsey will likely be doing with Watson and the offense this season. Get a young, dynamic player like Wright with a highly-touted Running Backs Coach like newly-added Duce Staley and he may end up becoming a Nick Chubb-caliber player for Cleveland.