Cleveland Browns 7-round 2021 NFL mock draft: Computer simulation
By Kyle Edmond
The Cleveland Browns missed out on the J.J. Watt sweepstakes, but there’s a lot more to look forward to, even in an offseason where the Browns aren’t looking for a head coach, general manager or quarterback for the first time in a while.
While this isn’t my first mock draft for the Browns of late, I decided to do this one a little differently. With the other mock drafts I’ve done, I made the picks when the time comes, but this time I let the computer make the picks. Instead of making the decisions, I’m to try and reason why the system thinks that each of these picks is the best fit for the Browns at that point in the draft. Let’s see what the simulation comes up with!
Note: This mock draft was completed using The Draft Network’s Mock Draft Machine.
2021 NFL mock draft: Round 1, Pick 26
Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. LSU. Terrace Marshall Jr.. WR. 1. player. 817
Right off the bat, we get a pick that seems a bit confusing based on what the Cleveland Browns currently need, but we can dig a little deeper and help it make sense. Rashard Higgins isn’t on the roster, so if the Browns don’t re-sign him, then picking Terrace Marshall Jr. in the first round makes a little more sense, but still not a whole lot.
However, Higgins might not be the only wide receiver with a question mark by his name. Both Odell Beckham Jr. and now Jarvis Landry have had their names thrown around in trade rumors. Moving Beckham makes some sense given how the offense performed without him. If you can improve other areas by moving him, then that’s something the team can entertain.
Landry, on the other hand, has been one of the better players on the team and has been a reliable target for Baker Mayfield, helping to accelerate his development. If one or both of them are moved this offseason, then picking Marshall makes more sense.
Marshall was the fifth of six wide receivers to go in the first round of this 2021 NFL mock draft. While he never totaled close to 800 yards in a season, he was one of the premier red-zone threats on the team with 10 touchdowns in 2020 and 13 in 2019.