CLEVELAND (92.3 The Fan) – A 2018 second-round draft pick.
That’s it.
Former Browns offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan only had to part ways with a second-rounder to get his quarterback in San Francisco to build around. Meanwhile the Browns are just happy that Hue Jackson didn’t have to bench rookie DeShone Kizer for the umpteenth time this season Sunday in London during a 17-point loss to the Vikings.
So what gives?
The Browns had 3, that’s right 3 second-round picks in 2018 – theirs, which as of today is No. 34, Houston’s and Philadelphia’s to play with.
Regardless of the circumstances surrounding Monday night’s trade between New England and San Francisco, the bottom line is this: the Browns missed out, again.
Sashi Brown and Hue Jackson had a chance to deal for Garoppolo in March but the reported asking price of at least a first-round pick was not worth the risk in their estimation because they just weren’t sold on him. They also weren’t sold on Carson Wentz in 2016 and Deshaun Watson in 2017, hence the decision to dangle those picks and then trade down with the Eagles and Texans.
But what do the Browns want at quarterback if Wentz, Watson and Garoppolo weren’t good enough to pass their eye test?
Better yet, what does their eye test even look like?
In the last 2 years the Browns have acquired quarterbacks Robert Griffin III, Cody Kessler, Kevin Hogan, Brock Osweiler and DeShone Kizer while passing on opportunities to acquire Wentz, Watson and Garoppolo.
Let that sink in for a minute.
Griffin is out of football, Kessler is undersized and has struggled mightily, Hogan isn’t the answer and despite assertions that Kizer can be “the guy” he has yet to show a single moment of sheer brilliance observed of Wentz, Garoppolo or Watson in their limited playing time.
Throw in the Browns’ decision not to hang on to veteran Josh McCown, who has won 3 games and is playing at a high level for the New York Jets, to mentor Kizer and there is nothing left to do but just shake your head in dismay.
Sure, hindsight is always 20-20, and questioning past decisions do nothing to move the team or even conversation forward, however there are legitimate concerns about the Browns’ evaluation process at the position that so far has produced more questions (that the organization is also completely unwilling to answer) than answers.
The first of which is, what on earth are the Browns looking for?
