Brandon Jackson

If this was any other team that had the #1 overall pick in this year’s NFL draft, I wouldn’t need to be writing this. If any other perennially high-drafting team like the Jaguars or the Bills had the #1 pick, this wouldn’t be necessary to say. But this isn’t the case.

The Cleveland Browns have the #1 pick.

The Browns’ last good 1st round selection was Joe Haden. That feels like an eternity ago. But all that can change in 2017. There is finally real hope for the future of the Browns. There are a couple of young pieces on the roster, and there is a generational talent sitting there waiting to be picked first in may.

The problem is we’re talking about the Browns here. Everything that looks simple will end up being difficult. In 2011 the Browns were on the clock and Julio Jones was still on the board. Along with J.J. Watt and Tyron Smith, but the Browns traded back about 20 times and ended up with Phil Taylor.

So the point I’m making is that we can’t trust the Browns to make these simple decisions. Myles Garrett is the best player available, and somehow I still feel like the Browns can mess this up.

What if a team trades up for the 1st under the pretense of taking a quarterback then all of a sudden Roger Goodell is saying, “with the 1st pick in the 2017 NFL draft, the Chicago Bears select, Myles Garrett. Defensive end, Texas A&M.” That’s a real possibility.

Or the Browns could just blow it themselves. which is an even bigger possibility. They could take Jonathon Allen from Alabama, which wouldn’t be a huge disappointment, but would just be a safe pick, and not a reach for the stars like Garrett would be. The worst-case scenario, is the Browns reach with the 1st pick and take one of the quarterbacks that are not sure things.

All of the top QB prospects have talent and potential, but there are a lot of questions with all of them.

Of course, there is a huge need at the QB position, but reaching for a bad one can set a franchise back even further than it already is.

So when the time comes, just keep it simple Browns. Don’t even use the full 10 minutes of the clock. It should take 5 seconds to write Myles Garrett’s name on the card.