- Adding some juice to the defensive front: Despite trading out of a top-two pick, Cleveland added an impact player to slot next to Myles Garrett in Mason Graham, the highest-graded interior run defender (92.6 PFF grade) in college football last season.
- High-profile quarterback battle: With a pair of veterans, Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco, already on the roster and a pair of rookies, Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel, set to compete, the Browns’ quarterback competition is a top storyline in the NFL heading into camp.
- Final chance to claim 25% off PFF+: Use code DRAFT25 and unlock access to player grades, fantasy tools and the 2025 Draft Guide.
Estimated Reading Time: 3 minutes
Cleveland had an eventful draft weekend. It was a roller coaster ride that started with trading out of the second-overall pick, foregoing the opportunity to select the top-rated prospect in the class in Travis Hunter, and ended with the selection of Shedeur Sanders, a player many projected this team would select in the first round in the early period of the pre-draft process.
While the Browns added some talented options to build around, some questionable moves cloud the class’ future outlook and potential impact.
Cleveland Browns 2025 NFL Draft Class:
1 (5): DI Mason Graham, Michigan
2 (33): LB Carson Schwesinger, UCLA
2 (36): RB Quinshon Judkins, Ohio State
3 (67): TE Harold Fannin Jr., Bowling Green
3 (94): QB Dillon Gabriel, Oregon
4 (126): RB Dylan Sampson, Tennessee
5 (144): QB Shedeur Sanders, Colorado
Upgrading the interior with a relentless motor in Round 1: It wasn’t the Abdul Carter–Myles Garrett pairing that was often discussed in the lead-up to the draft, but Garrett still got a high-end talent added next to him on the defensive line after the Browns traded back. Mason Graham’s production at Michigan is hard to ignore. He posted an overall grade above 90.0 in 2023 and 2024, including a nation-best 92.6 PFF run-defense grade among interior defensive linemen last season.
Continuing to build out the middle of the defense in Round 2: After moving back to select Graham in Round 1, Cleveland picked another defender at the top of Round 2 in Carson Schwesinger. The UCLA linebacker is a high-end athlete who was the highest-graded blitzer in the draft class at the position (90.0 PFF pass-rushing grade in 2024). The Browns moved to add talented players into the middle of their defense, which was already their projected strength heading into 2025.
Rookie to watch: TE Harold Fannin Jr., Bowling Green
Fannin is a strong receiving tight end with great value after the catch. His blocking reps are good enough to keep him inline as a TE2 next to David Njoku, or as a wingback on occasion, but his bread and butter in the NFL will be as a tight end who you can quickly get the ball to for after-the-catch production in a tight end-centric passing attack.
Position/role battle to watch: Shedeur Sanders vs. Dillon Gabriel vs. Kenny Pickett vs. Joe Flacco
After Day 1 of the NFL draft came to a close, the story quickly turned to the slide of Shedeur Sanders, the player many projected to be the Browns’ pick at No. 2. The narrative took a further turn toward chaos when Cleveland opted to select Dillon Gabriel in the third round over Sanders. But with their final pick, the Browns made the call to Sanders, creating a firestorm in the quarterback room.
With a pair of veterans already on the roster and a pair of rookies set to compete, the team’s quarterback competition is a top storyline heading into camp.
Draft grade: C+
This news was originally published on this post .
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