There’s been considerable buzz around recent Cleveland Browns draft picks KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston. Head coach Todd Monken needed an infusion of young, high-end talent for his wide receiver room. General manager Andrew Berry delivered with a pair of first-round-caliber talents inside the top 40 overall picks.
Neither of those players are Carnell Tate, though, and Browns fans who tuned into the latest episode of The St. Brown Podcast could have a hard time reconciling that fact.
Tate, the Ohio State superstar who somewhat surprisingly went No. 4 overall to the Tennessee Titans, told co-host Equanimeous St. Brown that he expected to land in Cleveland had he slipped outside of the top five picks.
“I was shocked, for real. I didn't expect to go that high, and then it happened and I was like, ‘Damn, let’s go play ball now,'" Tate said, adding: "I thought Cleveland — I thought they weren't going to pass up on me."
Carnell Tate believed Cleveland wouldn't pass on him if he made it past the top five
By the time Day 1 of the draft finally arrived, it was hardly a secret that the Browns were planning to target the two glaring needs on their offensive depth chart. In a class weak on quarterback talent, left tackle and wide receiver were the most talked about position groups for the Browns’ pair of first-round selections.
Cleveland entered the draft with pick Nos. 6 and 24 overall, but with Tate off the board, Berry opted to execute a trade with the Kansas City Chiefs to slide back three spots to No. 9. The move paid off, as the Browns were still able to take the first offensive lineman off the board in Utah’s Spencer Fano.
The Browns clearly prioritized Fano as a potential franchise left tackle, but it’s fair for fans to wonder just how high of a priority he was. Berry read the board perfectly, acquired extra draft capital, and still got one of his top prospects. But if Fano was really a player the Browns couldn’t afford to lose, would they have really traded back before drafting him?
Berry wound up getting his left tackle first, before doubling down at the wide receiver position with Concepcion and Boston with the Browns’ next two picks. That strategy has been lauded by draft experts since April, as there’s a great chance that at least one of the Browns’ rookie receivers develops into a cornerstone player.
Tate might already be that guy, though, as his smooth route running and sure hands have impressed reporters in Nashville.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Browns had been looking to shop the No. 6 overall pick well before they were on the clock. Perhaps Tate wouldn’t have been an auto selection had the Titans gone in a different direction at pick No. 4.
But in a draft that lacked a clear consensus No. 1 tackle, Tate was the sure thing at a clear position of need. The Buckeyes product may have been the one true domino that sent Cleveland’s entire plan in motion.
Add us as a preferred source on Google