Roger Goodell won't be announcing a pick by the Cleveland Browns in the first round of the draft (barring a trade) but they do have Odell Beckham, Jr. -- a pretty nice trade-off. And in Round 5, the Browns have three picks, meaning they should have some flexibility to make a move up should a key prospect get within range of their first pick. In fact, that's just what I have them doing in my seven-round mock draft.
Below, you can check out our projection of the Browns' top positional needs and which picks the Browns currently have. I'll then build a war-room big board based upon players I think have some kind of chance of making it to their first pick before sharing multiple draft classes that make sense for the team from myself, Ryan Wilson and Chris Trapasso.
As for the actual draft, you'll be able to stream our live coverage right here on CBS Sports HQ (or download the CBS Sports app for free on any mobile or connected TV device) breaking down all the picks and everything you need to know during draft weekend.
Current draft picks
| Round | Overall | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 49 | |
| 3 | 80 | |
| 4 | 119 | |
| 5 | 144 | from Jacksonville |
| 5 | 155 | |
| 5 | 170 | from New England |
| 6 | 189 | |
| 7 | 221 | from Jacksonville |
Team needs
The CBS Sports NFL writing staff recently compiled positional rankings to identify needs for each team heading into the draft. A helpful guide: any position group that had an average ranking worse than 16.0 (on a scale of 1 to 32) was considered a "need," while any that ranked worse than 23.0 (bottom-third of the league) was considered a "pressing need."
| QB | RB | WR/TE | OL | EDGE | INT DL | LB | DB |
| 8.6 | 3.8 | 1.8 | 15.6 | 5.0 | 11.2 | 15.5 | 13.0 |
Needs: N/A
Pressing: N/A
The Cleveland Browns, ladies and gentlemen! One of two teams on our entire list with no needs or pressing needs. My, how times have changed. The offensive line is the closest thing to a need area here, and after seeing Joe Thomas retire and Kevin Zeitler get shipped out in a trade the past two offseasons, that makes a good deal of sense. If they can add some depth there and in the defensive backfield, this looks like one of the best teams in the league in 2019.
War room big board
The Browns are scheduled to wait until 48 players are off the board before making their first pick, which makes setting an expected list of available players a bit difficult, but let's see what we can come up with. Here's how I'd project the Cardinals' draft board for their first pick, considering only players I feel have some chance of making it in range:
- DT Jeffery Simmons, Mississippi State
- CB Deandre Baker, Georgia
- G Chris Lindstrom, Boston College
- CB Justin Layne, Michigan State
- CB Rock Ya-Sin, Temple
- OT Greg Little, Ole Miss
- CB Sean Bunting, Central Michigan
- CB Julian Love, Notre Dame
- WR Terry McLaurin, Ohio State
- CB/S Juan Thornhill, Virginia
- CB/S Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, Florida
- DT Dre'Mont Jones, Ohio State
Seven-round mock drafts
| Round | Overall | Player | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 45 | CB Justin Layne, Michigan State | from ATL* |
| 2 | 49 | to Atlanta | |
| 3 | 70 | OT Yodny Cajuste, West Virginia | from TB* |
| 3 | 80 | to Tampa Bay | |
| 4 | 119 | WR Darius Slayton, Auburn | |
| 5 | 144 | to Atlanta | from JAC |
| 5 | 155 | to Tampa Bay | |
| 5 | 170 | to Denver | from NE |
| 6 | 182 | LB Drue Tranquill, Notre Dame | from DEN* |
| 6 | 189 | DT Terry Beckner, Jr., Missouri | |
| 7 | 221 | LB Sutton Smith, Northern Illinois | from JAC |
| 7 | 235 | G Ethan Greenidge, Villanova | from DEN/OAK* |
The Browns are suddenly looking like a contender after sacrificing their first-round pick as part of the Odell Beckham deal, but rather than sit on their hands and see what's available on Day 2, they spend two of their fifth-round picks moving up in Rounds 2 and 3 for the right prospects. First they add help at outside corner in Layne, who knows how to close on receivers and the ball and should hold his own across from Denzel Ward. Next they move up 10 spots to grab Cajuste, who can back up both tackle spots or potentially push Greg Robinson on the blind side.
After adding a vertical threat in Slayton, who has the upside to develop into something more, the Browns recoup one Day 3 pick by moving down 12 spots before landing linebacker depth in Tranquill, then come back a few picks later for depth on the defensive line in Beckner. Smith is a tweener who isn't big enough to stay at edge rusher but could develop into an interesting piece as a strongside linebacker. Greenidge brings more depth to the interior of the line after losing Kevin Zeitler.
More seven-round mocks:
(*) indicates pick acquired via trade
Check out more first-round mocks from CBS Sports.