Sunday, April 29, 2012
Associated Press
BEREA
From the outset, the Cleveland Browns were decisive and daring in this year’s NFL draft.
They had to get this one right — a must-win.
Convinced they couldn’t risk waiting for the players they wanted, the Browns wasted little time in selecting Alabama running back Trent Richardson and Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden, two potential franchise-changing players, in the first round and then spent the next two days addressing other needs.
They got deeper. The got faster. They got tougher.
And, the Browns, who went 4-12 last season in the NFL’s toughest division, believe they got better, significantly better.
“We’d all like to see a big jump this year, that’s our hope,” president Mike Holmgren said. “We think that’s possible. That’s reasonable.”
Cleveland concluded three days of selections on Saturday by taking seven more players, including Travis Benjamin, a speed-burning wide receiver from Miami who will stretch defenses and allow Weeden to air out that high-powered arm that made the Browns fall in love with him. The Browns selected six offensive players and five on defense.
None of them, though, are as important as Weeden, the 28-year-old QB and former minor league baseball pitcher the Browns hope can end years of failure at the game’s most vital position.
“The quarterback play is so important to any team,” Holmgren said. “And really in this business, your team is probably as good as how your quarterback plays and the play of that position.”
Holmgren said Weeden will not be handed the starter’s job, but conceded the team probably wouldn’t have taken him with the No. 22 pick if it didn’t intend to play him immediately.
The Browns were criticized for overlooking wide receivers in the first three rounds, but they snatched the speedy Benjamin with the first of their two fourth-round picks.
“He’s extremely fast,” Shurmur said. “We got him clocked down around 4.3 [in the 40]. He’d beat anybody in here. He can really go.”
With their next pick, the Browns took Nevada linebacker James-Michael Johnson and then used their first of two picks in the fifth round on 6-foot-7 Colorado offensive lineman Ryan Miller, who can play guard and tackle and has a nasty streak.
“I try to play vicious,” he said. “I’ll give you my all and I’ll bleed, bite, crawl and scratch to get the job done.”
The Browns took Texas linebacker Emmanuel Acho and Boise State defensive tackle Billy Winn in the sixth round, and grabbed Arizona defensive back Trevin Wade in the seventh before closing their draft by taking Alabama fullback Brad Smelley, who can’t wait to be reunited with Richardson.
“He’s the best back I’ve ever seen,” Smelley said. “I’m excited to play with him again.”
Holmgren came away enthused about what the Browns accomplished.
With general manager Tom Heckert making the calls, Cleveland added some pieces. Now, he just has to hope they fit together.
“Our team foundation is better,” Holmgren said. “Now, we have to be able to score points. That was a problem for us last year and so I think we’ve addressed that a little bit. Are we ready to jump into elite status? I don’t know what that means necessarily. But I am anticipating a good jump in our level of play.”