Daniel Jeremiah dropped his first big board ahead of the Reese’s Senior Bowl, and it is of importance to the Cleveland Browns, who hold the No. 2 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft.
When NFL.com’s Jeremiah drops his mock drafts and big boards, the industry is soon to follow in his footsteps. The Browns are loaded up with picks atop each round and a few extras from some in-season trades, so with the team’s cap space on the mend and picking in the first round for the first time in three years, it’ll be crucial for them to be active this draft in landing young, impactful talent.
So what stands out from Jeremiah’s initial big board? Let’s take a peek:
A Pair of Elite Talents at 1 and 2
Nov 29, 2024; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes wide receiver Travis Hunter (12) warms up before the game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Few raised their stock throughout the college postseason like Penn State’s edge rusher Abdul Carter, who went from a certain 1st-round pick to potentially the first overall pick after an electrifying season. In a division featuring quarterbacks like Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson, the Browns could become the ultimate foil and give Myles Garrett a terrifying counterpart with Carter on the other side terrorizing opposing offenses.
Not far behind is Colorado’s dual-threat Travis Hunter, who DJ sent to Cleveland in his first mock draft. Jeremiah mentioned he shares concern for Hunter’s endurance throughout a whole season if he continued to play both sides and would prefer him to stick at receiver. This would be the cleaner fit with Denzel Ward already playing a similar role on defense, but offensively the team could use a true #1 threat and let the supporting talent flourish behind him.
The Quarterbacks aren’t Elite, but they aren’t Far Behind
Sep 7, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Miami Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward (1) passes the football against the Florida A&M Rattlers during the first quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
Much as we expected as the collegiate season came to a close, this will be a two-quarterback class with Miami’s Cam Ward and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders. Neither is similar to the other in terms of style, and neither is coveted enough to be considered among the class elites, but they do sit at 10th and 11th respectively on Jeremiah’s first big board.
That makes them both fairly clean first round prospects and worthy of a selection anywhere on day one, so the Browns will have to do intensive research on if they want to start anew with one or the other when it comes to their pick.
A cheap quarterback on a four-year deal would be one way to compete in the meantime while offsetting DeShaun Watson’s contract, a strategy that paid off well for the Denver Broncos who selected Bo Nix and made the playoffs while eating Russell Wilson’s dead money. But a hard discussion will need to be had if either of these young signal callers is worth passing on the talents of Carter or Hunter.
If the Browns want to hedge their bets, Jeremiah has selected Jaxson Dart from Ole Miss as his clear QB3, ranked at 41st. Selecting an elite talent, or trading down and adding more picks, could all be in play if the team wants to take a shot on a decent prospect at value.