The players the Cleveland Browns could target with their first pick in the 2022 NFL Draft
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Following the blockbuster, franchise-altering trade for quarterback Deshaun Watson, the Browns are likely to be spectators during the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft on Thursday night.
That's especially true if you believe Browns General Manager Andrew Berry.
"I would never rule out anything. I would say, just candidly, I think it's unlikely [we would trade up into the first round]," Berry said last week. "But I don't want to say anything in absolutes because you just never know how situations ... Quite honestly, I wouldn't have expected us to move up last year, so you have to be flexible for the situation."
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The first pick the Browns are scheduled to have is in the second round (No. 44 overall).
The Browns have picked a player at No. 44 overall three times in franchise history. Most recently, that was in 2020, when the team took safety Grant Delpit. In 1984, in the NFL Supplemental draft of USFL and CFL players, the Browns used the 44th pick on wide receiver and special teams ace Gerald McNeil, aka The Ice Cube.
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In 1960, the Browns selected Ohio State pass rusher Jim Marshall with the No. 44 overall pick. He played just a season for the Browns before being traded to the Minnesota Vikings, where he became one of the team’s all-time great players.
Who could the Browns use that pick on this year? In the buildup to the draft, Browns beat writer Nate Ulrich has been profiling some of the prospects who could be on the team's radar.
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David Ojabo, EDGE, Michigan
Edge rusher is one of the Browns' top needs. Even if the Browns re-sign unrestricted free agent Jadeveon Clowney to start opposite All-Pro Myles Garrett, it would still be an area of the roster ripe for succession planning. One player they could target is Ojabo, once considered a first-round lock, he could fall in the draft after tearing his Achilles at Michigan's pro day.
Read more about Ojabo, who the Browns may gamble on.
Logan Hall, DL, Houston
The Browns need help at defensive end and tackle, making Houston's Logan Hall a prospect of interest in Cleveland because he has the ability to play both positions.
Read more about Hall, who will benefit from physical transformation in the draft.
Skyy Moore, WR, Western Michigan
The Browns released five-time Pro Bowl receiver Jarvis Landry in a cost-saving move. Landry is best known for his production out of the slot, but he can do plenty of damage on the outside, too. Perhaps Skyy Moore's ability to fill those roles intrigues Berry.
Read more about Moore, who may be new to wide receiver but just what the Browns need.
Perrion Winfrey, DT, Oklahoma
The Browns need help at defensive tackle and may choose to address the position when they're scheduled to go on the clock for the first time this year in the second round. Connecting those dots makes it easy to identify Oklahoma's Perrion Winfrey as a logical player to watch for Cleveland.
Travis Jones, DT, Connecticut
A powerful defensive tackle from the University of Connecticut, Travis Jones bullied offensive linemen during Senior Bowl practices in February in Mobile, Alabama, ensuring he wouldn't become a forgotten man in the NFL Draft.
Read more about Jones, who pushed his way into the discussion for the Browns.
David Bell, WR, Purdue
Wide receiver David Bell could be a middle-round bargain in the NFL Draft. Despite being voted a consensus first-team All-American last season as a junior, Bell is projected by many draft analysts to become a third- or fourth-round pick, with a lack of elite speed being the main knock on him.
George Karlaftis, DE, Purdue
Strongside defensive end is the ideal position for George Karlaftis in the NFL, Purdue coach Jeff Brohm said, and the Browns have a need there in the spot opposite All-Pro end Myles Garrett. Even if the franchise re-signs Clowney, drafting for a succession plan at edge defender shouldn't be ruled out. To get Karlaftis to Cleveland, though, an unlikely trade up scenario would almost certainly need to unfold.
Read more about Karlaftis, who Brohm thinks could be an All Pro in the NFL.
Jermaine Johnson II, EDGE, Florida State
Who from this draft class have the Browns essentially passed on? Jermaine Johnson II is an edge defender the Browns might have been able to pick 13th overall before they traded the selection to the Houston Texans as part of the deal for Watson.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns NFL Draft 2022 targets include receiver, defensive linemen
