The NFL Draft is Here
The NFL Draft is finally here. In just under 10 hours the Cleveland Browns will be on the clock. Here are three first-round storylines that I am very intrigued by as the start of the draft rapidly approaches.
1. Will Gareon Conley go in the first round? The former Buckeye is unquestionably a first-round talent. However, being accused of rape this week, his status is up in the air. He claims innocence and there is supposedly video to corroborate his plea of no wrong-doing. It will be interesting to see if a team will take the sure-fire first-round talent despite the legal trouble that might come with him.
2. How does the quarterback situation pan out? I truly believe that Deshaun Watson will be the best pro of the bunch. However, I think Mitch Trubisky will be the first quarterback taken. How many go in the first round? 3? 4? 5? Trubisky, Watson, Patrick Mahomes, DeShone Kizer, and Davis Webb are all possibilities in the first round. Teams value selecting a signal-caller, even if it's in the latter half of the first round as opposed to the second round, because a first-round pick is under team control for five years, whereas a second rounder is only under team control for four years. It will be interesting to see which teams select quarterbacks. Teams I think might be in play: Browns, Jets, Bills, Cardinals, Chiefs, Texans.
3. Will Joe Mixon come off the board? Joe Mixon might be the most talented running back in the draft. If not for the video of him breaking a coed's jaw he would certainly be in the discussion with Leonard Fournette and Christian McCaffrey as running backs to go in the first half of the first-round. Teams got burned last year by passing on Tyreek Hill given his past, and that came back to bite them. Will a team avoid taking Mixon based on his past? I'm not so sure. I have a sneaking suspicion that the former Oklahoma running back will be off of the board after tonight.
