Browns Predicted to Make NFL Draft Trade to Replace Watson

The 2025 NFL Draft is almost here for the Cleveland Browns, and there are multiple questions the front office will have to address. If the Browns find a quarterback they love, there’s no excuse for them not to take said player. 

It’ll be interesting to see what the Browns do, as they hold the second overall pick. Some have suggested that the Browns won’t draft a quarterback at that spot, but things can change. 

If the Browns love Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders, they should take one of them.

However, in a recent mock draft from CBS Sports, they had the Browns moving back into the first round by trading with the Los Angeles Chargers for the 22nd overall pick.

With that pick, they had Cleveland selecting Jaxson Dart.

“The Browns get who they believe can be their quarterback of the future, and make sure they don’t miss him, moving from No. 33 to this spot to get him,” Chris Trapasso wrote.

Browns Like Dart

The Cleveland Browns have spoken about Dart, and that’s a good indication that the team may move up in the draft if necessary. When talking to reporters about the quarterback situation, head coach Kevin Stefanski had excellent things to say about the Ole Miss product.

“A very impressive young man,” Stefanski said, according to AL.com.

“Has been coached really well. You know Joe Judge is down there as his quarterback coach, and Joe’s a former NFL head coach, former special-teams coach, offensive, defensive. Joe kind of knows the game, so you can tell that he’s been really well-coached and brought along the right way in this game, so impressive off the field and then did a nice job on the field as well.”

College is much different than the NFL, but if Dart has any of the same success that he did at Ole Miss, the Browns should feel confident in him being a decent quarterback in the league.

He isn’t as over hyped as some of the other top players in the draft, but he’s starting to fly up draft boards after throwing for 4,279 yards and 29 touchdowns in his senior season in the SEC.

What Does Stefanski Want?

Regarding what the Cleveland Browns are looking for in a quarterback, Stefanski doesn’t believe there’s much more going on in the NFL than in college.

Obviously, the game is played at a different speed, and players are much talented. Still, college quarterbacks, especially someone like Dart in the SEC, have the best facilities and training staffs in college football. If anything, he should be more than fine when entering the professional ranks.

“I think that’s probably overstated,” Stefanski said. “I don’t know that there’s a huge difference in what colleges are doing and what people are doing in the pros these days. There’s certainly elements that you’re going to ask a quarterback to do differently regardless of what school he came from, so I don’t think that there’s a concern there.”

There’s a scenario where another team could come in and draft him before that pick if this were to happen, but if he falls into the 20s and the Browns like him, there’s no excuse not to trade up and find their guy.