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Cleveland Browns: Mitch Trubisky at #1 Likelihood Is Growing

By Erik Lambert

Nov 5, 2016; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Mitch Trubisky (10) goes into the end zone after scoring a forth quarter touchdown run against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Kenan Memorial Stadium. The North Carolina Tar Heels defeated the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 48-20. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 5, 2016; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Mitch Trubisky (10) goes into the end zone after scoring a forth quarter touchdown run against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Kenan Memorial Stadium. The North Carolina Tar Heels defeated the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 48-20. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nov 5, 2016; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Mitch Trubisky (10) goes into the end zone after scoring a forth quarter touchdown run against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Kenan Memorial Stadium. The North Carolina Tar Heels defeated the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 48-20. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 5, 2016; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Mitch Trubisky (10) goes into the end zone after scoring a forth quarter touchdown run against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Kenan Memorial Stadium. The North Carolina Tar Heels defeated the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 48-20. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports /

For many people the idea that the Cleveland Browns could take anybody other than Myles Garrett with the #1 overall pick is unthinkable.

Isn’t the common credo of the draft that the team with the top choice select the best possible player on the board? Well sure, it sounds easy when put that way. Yet it’s not based in reality. The NFL is not driven by pass rushers. Sure, Von Miller had his once-in-a-lifetime performance in Super Bowl 50 but be honest. Can any team really bank on that sort of thing happening often? Of course not. This is a quarterback-driven league.

The Browns do not have a quarterback. That’s another inescapable fact. Robert Griffin III, Brock Osweiler, and Cody Kessler are not the future of that franchise. At least not if they ever want to enjoy winning games that matter. It’s this fact, along with the feel-good story of Mitch Trubisky being from the Cleveland area that is making the idea of him going #1 feasible.

Adam Schefter of ESPN went on SportsCenter stating that it’s not just a well-placed rumor. The Browns are dead serious about the idea.

Of course people will say just take Garrett and trade up for a quarterback or just take a quarterback at #12. That’s easy to say but the fact of the matter is somebody in that organization with a lot of pull really wants Trubisky. Odds are it’s probably ownership. In such cases the challenge is made all the greater. GM Sashi Brown says the team made its pick two weeks ago but that means nothing. Odds are there are still some deliberations going on.

Garrett may be the better talent. That’s not in question. The problem is he’s not a quarterback. Simple reality say that Trubisky is at a more impactful position. Period. Put it this way. As of today quarterbacks selected #1 overall have produced 15 Super Bowl victories. Pass rushers have managed six and one of those players was on a team with a #1 QB. It may seem ludicrous from a traditional draft perspective, but it shouldn’t. Even the slight chance of landing a franchise quarterback can’t be ignored.

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