- This topic has 2 replies, 2 voices, and was last updated 4 years, 6 months ago by
.
- Posts
ASK WUNKLE: 2020 NFL DRAFT EDITION
I thought I’d give my fellow padded cell mates a little different spin for the 2020 NFL Draft edition of Ask Wunkle. Our viewers have thought long and hard before submitting their questions. So buckle up and sit tight as we begin by playing “Fact or Fiction”.
Ice leads off the questions with . . . “Fact or Fiction: the Browns will draft an offensive tackle with the tenth overall pick.”
Wunkle: I say FACT. Barring some extremely unusual circumstances, Cleveland will draft on offensive tackle. While GM Andrew Berry has publicly stated that the Browns are not going to allow themselves to be pigeon holed into having to take someone at a said position, everyone following the NFL knows that offensive tackle is the Browns greatest need on that side of the football.
Dawg E. Dawg writes . . . “Fact or Fiction: Mekhi Becton, Andrew Thomas, Jedrick Wills and Tristan Wirfs are all elite NFL left tackle prospects.”
Wunkle: I say FICTION. While Tristan Wirfs may develop into a very good tackle, his best position by far is a guard and should play the position at a Pro Bowl level. And while Mekhi Becton is a physical freak, he’s extremely raw, and thus not a guarantee. Of the two, I’ll take my chances with Becton.
Dawg E. Dawg doubles up with . . . “Fact or Fiction: the Browns can trade down and still land one of the top four offensive tackle prospects.”
Wunkle: I say FICTION. First of all, there are only three elite left tackle prospects at the most. Secondly, it’s entirely plausible that all the top tackle prospects will be off the board by the time the Browns are on the clock at tenth overall.
And for the Dawg E. Dawg hat trick . . . “Fact or Fiction: the Browns will take Clemson defensive playmaker Isaiah Simmons if he is still on the board when the Browns are on the clock.”
Wunkle: I say FACT and FICTION. The Browns are in a position where they can address the offensive left tackle position via trade or free agency. There are also a few prospects that could fall to the second round for Cleveland. Simmons would easily be the best available player in this scenario, so the Browns would be crazy to not select him. In fact, they could not place that phone call to make the selection soon enough. The Fiction comes into play because there is no way in God’s green Earth that this scenario will ever play out in real life . . . unless we’re talking about some parallel universe.
Paul in Northeast Ohio chimes in with . . . “Fact or Fiction: the Browns will trade up to select the player they want.”
Wunkle: I say FICTION. While this is a possible scenario, I cannot fathom this front office of extremely analytical minds giving up what it will take to move up from tenth overall. This group values draft picks too much to make such a bold move.
Brandon in Canton says . . . “Fact or Fiction: the Browns will draft a quarterback somewhere in the first three rounds.”
Wunkle: I say FICTION. While this is a critical year for Baker Mayfield, is committed to giving him this year to prove that last season was an aberration and not a downward spiral from which there is no return. If Mayfield returns to his rookie season form or better, then he’ll likely be the Browns starting quarterback for years to come. If not, then he’ll not get a second contract offer from the Browns, and will be relegated to becoming a full time Progressive Insurance spokesperson.
The Brandon in Canton double dip . . . “Fact or Fiction: 2020 is a make or break year for Baker Mayfield.”
Wunkle: I say FACT. This is a critical year for Baker and the Browns. However, the front office definitely needs to address the offensive left tackle position in some form or fashion in order for Baker’s blind side protected so that he can have the success everyone in Berea believes that he can have.
Brad in Stark County says . . . “Fact or Fiction: the Browns will pursue veteran linebacker Clay Matthews III after the draft.”
Wunkle: I say FACT. The Browns still need to sign a veteran linebacker, and I think that Matthews would be an excellent pick up for one or two years. Also . . . if this isn’t fact, it should be.
Doubling up with Brad in Stark County . . . “Fact of Fiction: a team will give the Browns a 2nd round pick for Kareem Hunt. The Browns will package at least one of those seconds to move back into the first round and select Wisconsin linebacker Zack Baun.”
Wunkle: I say FICTION. While the Browns may move back into round one to acquire Baun or some other player in round one, no NFL team will give up a second round draft pick for Kareem Hunt. At least three of the top four running backs will be available in the second round.
GABrownsFan comes in with his own hat trick . . . “Fact or Fiction: the Miami Dolphins will pass on Tua Tagovailoa.”
Wunkle: I say FICTION. Without the ability to have Tua come in for a physical, the Dolphins have been at a distinct disadvantage in their search for a quarterback. They have been relentless in their search for information, though. At the end of the day, they’re sold on the tape, so Tua will be drafted by the Dolphins.
Part deux . . . “Fact or Fiction: Mekhi Becton will drop into the high teens due to his flagged drug test from the NFL Combine.”
Wunkle: I say FICTION. While Mekhi Becton is an extremely raw talent, he has too much physical ability to be overlooked. When it’s all said and done, he could go off the board as early as fourth overall to the Giants. This is a great group of offensive tackles, particularly early in the draft; and the ranking order you hear of the “top four” depends on which “pundit” is holding the microphone.
Part trois . . . “Fact or Fiction: Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert will go in the top ten.”
Wunkle: I say FACT. Justin Herbert will go in the top ten; likely to the Los Angeles Chargers or a team that trades up to their draft position.
Brandon in Canton comes back again with . . . “Fact or Fiction: Odell Beckham Jr. will be traded sometime during day one of the 2020 NFL draft.”
Wunkle: I say FICTION. While Beckham’s first season with the Browns was a disappointment to all parties involved – with the possible exception of New York Giants fans – he played the entire 2019 season injured. This is a critical year for Beckham in terms of his future NFL career. And with so many highly rated players in this draft at the wide receiver position, no NFL team will show any interest in Beckham because of his salary. In short, he’s going absolutely nowhere this year. However, next year could be another story.
We also had a number of questions submitted in the traditional “Ask Wunkle” format, and we’ll finish up with those.
Ice is back at the plate with . . . “Which current roster holes would you address via free agency instead of in this draft?”
Wunkle: I’m not so sure I’d fill any holes with just one or the other, but rather with a combination of the two. After all, this is still a very young team that needs veteran leadership. I’d like to see the Browns add another linebacker via free agency (i.e. Clay Matthews III) as well as via the draft. And with the Trent Williams talk heating up again, it’ll be interesting to see how the Browns management addresses the much discussed void at the starting left tackle position. The 800 pond gorilla in the room with Williams is the fact that he’ll want to have his contract reworked or extended, which will not come cheaply. Reports are that he’ll be looking for 20 million per year, which is a pretty big pill to swallow. Because of his relationship with Baker Mayfield, I’d like to see the Browns re-sign Rashard “Hollywood” Higgins. They’ve already addressed the offensive right tackle, tight end, safety, cornerback and back-up quarterback positions, so that’s about it.
DawgSoldier asks . . . “What are your Top 3-5 at OT in the 1st round as there is some thought of trading back if the price is right?”
Wunkle: As I see it, the top three at the position include (in alphabetical order) Louisville’s Mekhi Becton, Georgia’s Andrew Thomas and Alabama’s Jedrick Wills. I’ll let you folks debate on the order of rank. Now there may be a team that who’ll draft Iowa’s Tristan Wirfs and project him as a tackle, but I’ve said all along that his best position is at guard. I’ve seen mocks where all four of these players are taken within the top fifteen, and some within the top ten. There’s another tier of tackles in this draft that includes Houston’s Josh Jones, USC’s Austin Jackson, Boise State’s Ezra Cleveland and Auburn’s Prince Tega Wanogho. It’s hard to say where this second group will start coming off the board, but I’m relatively sure that most – if not all – of these players will be off the board by the end of the second round. If the Browns were to trade back, the speculation is that it would be to take either Austin Jackson or Ezra Cleveland because of their SPARQ scores, but I think that they should be able to land one of the two at 41 if they decide not to take a tackle at 10.
And DawgSoldier follows up with . . . And your top 3-4 at DE, LB and S that MIGHT be there at 41?”
Wunkle: I’m glad you said “Might” because this is all one great big crapshoot. Defensive end candidates could include Notre Dame’s Julian Okwara, Alabama’s Terrell Lewis, Boise State’s Curtis Weaver, TSUN’s Josh Uche and Florida’s Jonathan Greenard – who could possibly play OLB at the next level. Linebacker candidates would include (maybe) Wisconsin’s Zack Baun, Appalachian State’s Akeem Davis-Gaither and Oregon’s Troy Dye. At the safety we have LSU’s Grant Delpit, California’s Ashtyn Davis, Minnesota’s Antoine Winfield Jr., Lenoir-Rhyne’s Kyle Dugger and Southern Illinois’ Jeremy Chinn. Utah has a couple safeties coming out as well. I think that Winfield get the publicity he does because of who his dad is, though.
We have time for three more. Brad in Stark County asks . . . “Suppose that the Browns address the offensive left tackle position via trade or free agency; do you think that Javon Kinlaw would be there at 10th overall for the Browns?”
Wunkle: Well, Brad, let’s do the math . . . 3 quarterbacks, 3 offensive tackles, plus Chase Young, Isaiah Simmons, Jeff Okudah and Derrick Brown make ten. So, yeah, he should be there. Now the question remains, “Will the Browns take a defensive tackle tenth overall?” I’m not so sure. We’ll just have to wait and see on Thursday how it all unfolds.
GABrownsFan asks . . . “What rounds do you think Ezra Cleveland and Josh Jones get drafted?”
Wunkle: I have Jones going in the back half of the first and Cleveland somewhere in round two. However, there could be an early run at the position, so who knows for sure?
And we’ll close it out with Dave from Barberton . . . “What is the wildest trade rumor/proposal you’ve heard this year involving the Browns and what are your thoughts on it?”
Wunkle: I heard this one yesterday while some people were basically spit-balling. The Browns trade #10, next year’s 1st round pick and Odell Beckham Jr. to the Washington Redskins in exchange for #2 and Trent Williams. Quite frankly, I don’t think that Browns GM Andrew Berry would make such a bold move and leave them without a 2021 first round pick, especially when the city of Cleveland is scheduled to host the 2021 draft. Is there part of me that would love to see it happen? Absolutely. Moving Beckham’s contract would allow the Browns to rework Williams’ contract and Cleveland could draft either Chase Young or Isaiah Simmons. I’d much rather see next year’s compensation be in round two, but hey . . . you never know what’s going to happen until it unfolds right in front of you. In all honesty, I think a more reasonable trade with Washington for Williams would be for a conditional 2021 pick . . . let’s say a fourth that could be upgraded to a second if certain performance criteria were met.
Well, that wraps it up for the 2020 NFL Draft edition of “Ask Wunkle”. Thanks again to all those who participated, whether via internet or via text messaging. I couldn’t do this without your continued support. Until we meet again, this is Bill Wunkle signing off from “The Padded Cell”. Be safe, shoot straight and most of all . . . GO BROWNS!
Am I going mad, or did the word THINK escape your lips? You were not hired for your brains, you hippopotamic landmass!
Nice job Wunkle! My fact or fiction question was actually a hidden 2 part question.
“Fact or Fiction: the Browns will draft an offensive tackle with the tenth overall pick.”
You think we’re going to stay at 10 and not trade the pick?
I think that’s the more likely scenario with the Browns taking an OT there. Get your OT and get on with the show. I’m thinking that, if they take a defensive player at 10, they’ve got to have a deal for a veteran OT in place.
Am I going mad, or did the word THINK escape your lips? You were not hired for your brains, you hippopotamic landmass!
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.