For Cleveland Browns fans, the off-season continues to be one of speculation, especially regarding the No. 2 draft pick in the upcoming NFL draft, which is still two months away.
Before we get to the draft, the NFL Combine and the NFL free agency period are approaching.
Cleveland could certainly pick up a player or two in free agency including a quarterback, a running back, or even a wide receiver. And with any of these transactions, the outlook on this year‘s draft for the Browns may shift.
A couple of weeks ago Myles Garrett announced to the world that he wanted to be traded. However, he still has two years remaining on his contract and the Browns don’t have to do anything.
Unfortunately, the outside pressures of the world may catch up to this saga but for now, Garrett is still part of the team.
So with all the fanfare of the off-season hitting hard here in Cleveland, let’s tackle this newest mock draft for the Browns. Despite the relentless chatter of the Browns taking a quarterback at No. 2, we go a slightly different route in this latest edition.
No. 2: Abdul Carter, DE, Penn State
With Garrett wanting to be traded, the Browns will take Abdul Carter at this pick. The star defensive end from Penn State is primed to become a star in the league and with or without Garrett, the team takes a sure defensive hit here.
Despite the constant conversation of the team, taking a quarterback at No. 2, it could all be a set-up by the team to try to drive the price up to trade away the pick.
But if the team stays put, getting Carter at this No. 2 spot would be a solid acquisition and leave Cleveland with a new defensive star.
He had a college-leading 24 tackles for losses and 12 sacks this past season and his draft hype has some people, considering that he could even be taken at No. 1 by the Tennessee Titans.
While the Browns offense still needs a lot of help and they’ll get that later in this mock draft, passing up on a new defensive star in the league is too much for Cleveland to resist.
No. 33: Omarion Hampton, RB, North Carolina
Omarion Hampton is a bruising running back who loves to take the contact and bully his way through for big yards and boy did he rack up the yards this past season. The bulldozing runner scampered for 1,660 yards and 15 touchdowns this past season. In the previous 2023 season, he went for 1,504 yards and 15 touchdowns.
He’s an aggressive runner who battered his opponent, having broken 72 tackles this past season, the best of all other college running backs.
The Browns may get proven veteran running back Nick Chubb to return to the team. Despite being a free agent this off-season the odds are in the team’s favor that he resigns. They’ll also have Jerome Ford returning for his third season. However, the run game has struggled over the past two seasons and the team needs to build up one of their weakest parts of the team.
Once Hampton starts running downhill, he’s a battering ram and is hard to stop. The Browns need a running back like him. He likes taking contact and flourishes after it. For the Browns to have more success offensively next season, they have to establish the run and the youngster out of North Carolina could be that guy.
No. 67: Harold Fannin, TE, Bowling Green
The Browns currently have one of the best tight ends in the league in David Njoku, but he’s entering his ninth season and the Browns need to find some new talent at this position. Harold Fannin from Bowling Green could be the next important tight end to play for the team.
Fannin is an Ohio high school product having played at Canton McKinley where he was a star on offense and defense playing wide receiver and safety. But he transitioned to the tight end position when he got to Bowling Green.
He had a career 2024 season as a Falcon. He recorded 117 catches for 1,555 yards and went for 10 touchdowns.
He’s a tall 6’4 player who played in the slot and can really create problems for the opponent’s defense. He still has a lot of work to do to make a big leap in the NFL, but the skies are the limit on his potential.
He’s had some recent personal family situations, including his sister having died from leukemia this past year that have really motivated him. That motivation has led to a player who was driven all season to be the best and the upside moving forward is very appealing.
The Browns will likely return to more two tight end-heavy offensive sets next season as their head coach Kevin Stefanski returns to play calling. The addition of Fannin would give Stefanski some amazing talent to play with when he starts calling out those new plays.
Someone’s going to get a really good football player in Fannin and the Browns should be the team that does that.
No. 94: Will Howard, QB, Ohio State
Cleveland takes a quarterback here in Will Howard from Ohio State. In this mock draft scenario, the Browns did something prior to the draft in either a trade or a free agency to bring in a veteran quarterback to start the season.
If the Browns don’t do anything before the draft, then we think the team will take either Cam Ward (Miami) or Shedeur Sanders (Colorado) at No. 2.
But back to the original scenario, if the Browns do take Howard here, it will be a good pick by the franchise to have a solid rookie backup who can learn and eventually start games.
Howard played four seasons at Kansas State before he transferred as a graduate student to Ohio State this past year. He compiled almost 10,000 passing yards, throwing for 83 touchdowns in his collegiate career. He only threw 35 interceptions. This past season as a Buckeye, he threw for over 4,000 yards and 35 touchdowns.
With a 6’5 frame, he was also a weapon out of the backfield where he could run the ball for good yards. He ended up with over 1,100 rushing yards and 35 touchdowns.
In a tough AFC North Division, Howard would fit in well for a team like the Browns because of some of these strengths.
Cleveland hasn’t had much good luck when it comes to drafting quarterbacks. The only really solid quarterback drafted by the Browns in recent history was Baker Mayfield in 2018. He was drafted No. 1 in that draft and helped bring the team back to relevance in the NFL.
Unfortunately, the organization and the player weren’t on the same page by 2022 and the team decided to trade Mayfield to the Carolina Panthers.
Cleveland eventually needs to find a new young quarterback for the future of this franchise. Will they do it here with Will Howard? It can’t hurt to try and maybe they luck out with this pick.
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