The 2018 NFL Draft is hours away. It's at this point in the proceedings that three words should serve as your guide: "Trust no one." Teams have tried for weeks -- and sometimes months -- to hide their draft-day intentions, and with the biggest spectacle of the offseason now upon us, the obfuscation goes into overdrive.
With that warning as a backdrop, here's the latest scuttlebutt on what the Browns will do with the No. 1 pick. They're leaning towards ... Baker Mayfield.
Browns continue to keep the decision on their No. 1 pick a secret, but there is a mounting belief from HCs and GMs around the league that Cleveland will take Baker Mayfield.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 26, 2018
This aligns with what The Athletic Cleveland's Dustin Fox told CBSSports.com's Will Brinson on a recent Pick Six Podcast.
We love the pick even if Mayfield's playing style reminds some folks of Johnny Manziel, the Browns' 2014 first-round pick. But Mayfield's not Manziel -- on or off the field -- and he's arguably the best quarterback in this class even if he doesn't check all the boxes on the Prototypical Franchise Quarterback form.
General manager John Dorsey, who was hired in December, is determined to take a quarterback after the team passed on Carson Wentz and Deshaun Watson in consecutive drafts. At the Senior Bowl, he said Mayfield's off-field issues were blown out of proportion.
Are there character concerns about him?'' Dorsey asked Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot at the time. "You guys create a narrative that you try to portray him as one.''
The Browns met with Mayfield at the combine and his interview reportedly went well. Then there's this: Former Redskins general manager Scot McCloughan was hired by the team as a draft consultant, and back in February, Cabot noted that McCloughan publicly praised Mayfield before joining the Browns, telling the Doug Gottlieb Show in October that Mayfield was his top quarterback in this year's class. But McCloughan, who was once a scout with the Packers, wasn't done.
"He reminds me of a shorter version of Brett Favre," he continued. "Tough guy. He can throw it. And he's very confident, and he's not afraid whatsoever, whatsoever. He's a battler. I know saying Brett Favre's a big name, and I was around him for a while, but this guy has talent."
In our first mock draft back in February, we had the Browns drafting Mayfield first overall for this very reason. And in the final round of CBSSports.com mock drafts, none of the six experts had Mayfield lasting beyond the No. 4 pick.
