Projecting who the Browns could draft in the 3rd round

For the second year in a row, the Cleveland Browns will not have a day-one draft pick as they surrendered three first-round picks to acquire Deshaun Watson last March. The draft used to be like Christmas for Browns fans as the team has picked highly in many drafts since returning in 1999.

While the wait is new and somewhat odd, Cleveland has put itself in a great position ahead of this year's draft. General manager Andrew Berry was busy during free agency and filled a lot of holes on the roster, which now gives them the perfect draft strategy.

Cleveland's first pick will be at No. 74, which they acquired in the trade with the Jets that landed wideout Elijah Moore. They will then have the 98th pick, which they received as a compensatory pick last offseason when Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was hired as the general manager of the Minnesota Vikings.

The Browns could very well trade one of these two picks to stockpile future draft assets, but for the sake of this publication, we'll say they deny all trade requests.

Some positions of need that Berry can address through the draft are EDGE, defensive tackle, wide receiver, linebacker, and safety. They will likely look at offensive linemen and running backs as well.

Here are the two players the Browns can draft in round three of the NFL Draft.

74. Isaiah Foskey - EDGE - Notre Dame

The Browns have been looking for an EDGE rusher to fully complement Myles Garrett for years, and even did so in free agency by signing Ogbonnia Okoronkwo. They can also add a young player with a ton of upside should he fall to the third round.

Isaiah Foskey is a player with size, speed, and athleticism who showed he could handle business starting for the Fighting Irish for the past two seasons. He finished his collegiate career with 26.5 sacks (11 coming in 2022) and 121 tackles with 72 being solo and 28 for a loss (13.5 in 2022).

Some have him going in the second round, so the Browns should run to the phone to turn this pick in should they have that option. Foskey is a guy who plays a similar style as Garrett and can continue to learn under one of the NFL's premier EDGE rushers.

Foskey is 6-foot-5, 254 pounds, and has the athleticism to go with his build. In fact, he returned a punt for a touchdown in his sophomore campaign in South Bend.

98. Tyler Scott - Wide Receiver - Cincinnati

When Andrew Berry drafted Anthony Schwartz in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft, many expected him to be a player who could really make defenses stay honest with his Olympic-level speed. That has not been the case, so this year, the team can draft his replacement in wide receiver Tyler Scott out of Cincinnati.

Scott is coming off a junior season that was highly productive for the Bearcats. He finished with 54 catches for 899 yards and nine touchdowns. Those numbers are good, but his speed and ability to separate himself from defenses will really help Watson and this offense.

He runs a 4.44 40-yard dash, and like Schwartz, was a Junior Olympic sprinter. He was a running back in high school and switched to receiver in college. His unique playmaking ability could not only be the final nail in the coffin of Schwartz but that of Demetric Felton.

The addition of Scott would be highly beneficial to this newly revamped offense and it could also play a part on special teams as he could be a candidate to return punts. Another player the Browns should sprint to the phone to select should he be available.