The Cleveland Browns didn’t exactly send shockwaves throughout the organization when they completed a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles to acquire QB Kenny Pickett this offseason.
Yet, if the Browns were to trade out of the No. 2 overall spot in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft — it would likely create more questions than answers about the direction of the franchise entering the upcoming season.
Well, in one recent mock draft scenario, the Browns do move outside of the top 5 in the draft to acquire an intriguing TE prospect.
Browns Acquire TE Michael Mayer From Raiders in Latest Mock Draft Proposal
NFL Draft season is in full swing. The Senior Bowl, NFL Combine, and Pro Days are mostly in the books — which has NFL beat writers, insiders, scouts, and draft analysts all pumping out mock drafts on a daily basis.
This includes ESPN’s Bill Barnwell, who produced a scenario in his recent mock draft scenario that includes an NFL trade for every team — which included the Browns acquiring Michael Mayer from the Las Vegas Raiders.
Barnwell wrote, “The Browns undoubtedly want to add a star player with the No. 2 pick, but they need more cost-controlled talent across the board because of the aftereffects of the Watson trade. Moving down and adding extra picks makes sense, especially if they can add another 2026 selection. By dropping down four spots, they could still draft an impact player at No. 6, land another top-40 pick and get a buy-low candidate in Mayer, who would pair well with David Njoku.”
The Browns would scoop up the 37th overall pick in addition to a fourth rounder in 2026, which would give Cleveland an extra opportunity to address multiple needs on the roster in this draft.
Barnwell added, “In every way imaginable, the Deshaun Watson trade has been a disaster for the Browns. There’s a lot of focus on how Watson’s fully guaranteed deal has impacted Cleveland’s salary cap, but what’s not often discussed are the missing players from the Browns’ roster. They traded three first-round picks and six total selections to the Texans for Watson in 2022.”
The Watson trade continues to haunt this organization both from a draft capital and salary cap perspective. To make matters worse, Watson’s Achilles injury isn’t guaranteed to be healed by the start of the 2025 NFL season, which does make quarterback feel like a glaring need on the roster entering the draft.
Who Could the Browns Select at No. 6 Overall?
In this trade scenario, the Browns would move back to No. 6 overall, which could completely change the draft board for the team.
Most draft pundits consider Penn State EDGE Abdul Carter and Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter to be the top two prospects in this class. If Cleveland moves out of the top five, then the odds drop dramatically that either of those players will be there when Cleveland is on the clock.
In this scenario, quarterback may be out of the question too. Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders are consider the top two signal callers in this draft class. Since the Tennessee Titans and New York Giants both badly need help under center, both of these prospects could also be gone at sixth overall.
The Browns would likely be taking a hard look at Michigan DT Mason Graham, Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty, Georgia EDGE Jalon Walker, or Missouri OT Armand Membou in this scenario. All of whom are quality prospects, but don’t feel like the potential ideal picks given their current draft situation at No. 2 overall.
