Cleveland Browns: 2020 NFL Draft late-round targets

If you are a frequent reader of my articles (first of all, thank you very much), you are probably tired of seeing and hearing about Antonio Gandy-Golden. If you aren’t yet, you either are as excited about him as I am, or you will get tired by the time the draft comes around.

Gandy-Golden is truly one of my favorite prospects in the 2020 NFL Draft and it baffles me how he falls into this category of “late-round targets”. To me, he’s a borderline first-round prospect, even in this very talented and deep receiver class.

At 6-foot-4 and 223 pounds, it’s clear what Gandy-Golden’s most notable attribute is. His large frame leads people to believe that he is just a big-bodied receiver who can win some jump balls and that’s about it. But Gandy-Golden is certainly more well-rounded than many give him credit for.

While he isn’t necessarily the most polished route runner with the most diverse route tree, Gandy-Golden has plenty of shake off the snap that allows him to get a leg up on the defender. Then he can use that big frame to shield the smaller corner and go out and catch the ball with his solid hands.

With the ball in his hands, Gandy-Golden is very hard to bring down. He ran a rather impressive 4.60 40-yard dash for a guy of his size and displayed his great strength with 22 bench press reps, even with nearly 32-inch arms.

If the Cleveland Browns were to draft Gandy-Golden, he would have the chance to learn some of the nuances of route running from two of the best wide receivers in football in Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr.

Right now, behind those two the Browns have really no depth at the wide receiver position. While Kevin Stefanski typically operates with just two receivers on the field, a quality third option wouldn’t hurt. Especially with both Beckham and Landry recovering from injuries right now.

Gandy-Golden operates almost exclusively on the outside, allowing the smaller and shifty Landry and Beckham to line up in the slot. Gandy-Golden could contribute when necessary as a rookie, learn and develop as a route runner, then step up and prove himself as one of the best receivers in the game if/when the Browns move on from either Beckham or Landry.

Where Gandy-Golden ultimately comes off the board is a mystery. I’m sure there could be a team that sees him like I do and snags him in the second or third round. But in many mock drafts, he can be had as low as the fifth or even sixth round. It, again, is a very deep and talented wide receiver class, so there will be starting quality receivers drafted in the late rounds. I hope that this one goes to the Cleveland Browns.