Not a big fan of the trade, but I guess there is something to be said about sticking to your convictions.
With the number 3 pick in the NFL Draft, the Browns select….
Trent Richardson
A Factory of Sadness
Stiff-jocked Sports Talk Internet
Not a big fan of the trade, but I guess there is something to be said about sticking to your convictions.
With the number 3 pick in the NFL Draft, the Browns select….
Trent Richardson
After a couple of days to mull things over, I no longer want to burn Berea to the ground. It’s not the way I probably would’ve gone, but I’m just some jackass sitting here.
I still don’t like taking a running back that high in the draft, but it doesn’t change the fact that Richardson is an exciting player, and more than likely the most exciting offensive player in Cleveland since ’99. He’s also embraced the city a la Haden and Cribbs, and you have to love that. I probably wouldn’t have taken him, but I’m going to be his biggest fan in the world now that he’s a Brown.
Weeden totally threw me off, at least in the first round. However, I have much more faith in him being able to go out there and sling it in this offense than I’ve ever had in Colt. If we get six to eight years of playoff-caliber QB play, I’ll not give a good goddamn that he’s as old as he is. He’s not Luck or Griffin, but he’s an upgrade (presumably).
Schwartz is a prototype right tackle: great run blocker, good pass blocker, mean as shit. I’ve had a mancrush on Jonathan Martin for about a month, but Schwartz is probably a better fit on the right side of our line. People have been bitching that he would’ve lasted until the third because of his “draft grade,” but the tackle run started right after that pick (not counting Massie, who must be a terrible person or something for how precipitously he dropped). Also, most tackles entering the draft are graded based on their ability to play the left side. Our Lord and Savior has that on lockdown. Schwartz is definitely the best RT prospect we’ve had since Tucker, and his upside to grade some roads for TRich is pretty great. If he’s who they wanted, then take him at 37. I’m fine with that.
The later round picks are a mystery to me. I don’t know enough about these guys to say much. They’re depth players in areas where we need depth (interior O-line, interior D-line, WR, LB). You need depth. Maybe Travis Benjamin is DeSean Jackson 2.0. Maybe Johnson can start at WLB. Whatever. We drafted three definite starters, and the rest are lottery tickets.
Too many armchair analysts have been bitching that our picks were reaches. They’re only reaches according to amateur draftniks who yell at television cameras. I couldn’t possibly give less of a shit about what Kiper or McShay think about a goddamn thing. “Value” isn’t defined by a big-headed douchebag from Baltimore who just felt like analyzing college players. Value is determined in two to three years when it becomes more apparent how good these players actually are. Everyone thought Colt was a great value in the third round. Guess what: he sucks. There’s no value in a player who won’t play for you. Heckert knows a fuckton more than Kiper about player evaluation and the draft, what with actually doing those things for a professional football team.
Again, I would’ve done this draft differently if it were me, but I know nothing compared to Heckert. Kiper knows nothing compared to Heckert. ESPN’s draft grade of the Browns won’t mean a goddamn thing come Sunday/Monday/whenever it comes out. The grade that matters is two years from now, when these players have hit the field and proven something. If Weeden leads us to wins in the division, or hopefully deep into the playoffs, then I won’t give a goddamn shit that he was drafted at #22 instead of #37. If they all suck, then Heckert fucked up the draft, and he probably won’t be here anymore. If that’s the case, then good riddance. Get someone in here who can finish the job. That’s how it goes.