The Browns haven’t had the greatest success with wide receivers, but they also haven’t prioritized drafting them. While their quarterback position remains unstable, many see their group of pass-catchers as insufficient. This year, Cleveland holds two first-round picks. Will one of them finally go to a wide receiver? Recently, GM Andrew Berry defended the organization’s ignoring the position in the early rounds.
“I think it’s not a philosophical thing. I think if you look back over the last several years, first couple years, we already had Odell [Beckham Jr.] and Jarvis [Landry] on the team”, the Browns general manager said of not using early draft picks on wide receivers. He noted that after moving on from them, they traded for Amari Cooper. And then they traded Cooper and added Jerry Jeudy, who is still with the team.
“It’s like, ‘Okay, what’s the actual resource expenditure?’. Because if it’s a fifth-round pick and a major extension, that’s a pretty significant resource”, he added, referencing the draft pick the Browns gave up to add Cooper at wide receiver. “I think a big factor is, who are the players and what’s the supply at the position in a given year and then how are you positioned with your pick? We would have no problem taking a receiver high, would have no problem taking receiver at any point in the draft. But it’s got to line up strategically with what you’re doing”.
Berry is right in pointing out that the Browns of relied heavily on veteran wide receivers rather than draft picks. They have never worked out as they hoped they would, but it’s part of why they haven’t drafted many high. Another factor he didn’t mention was the disastrous Deshaun Watson trade.
They had no first- or second-round picks in 2022 and 2023, and no first-round pick in 2024. And in 2023, the Browns used their highest draft pick—74th overall, in the third round—in wide receiver Cedric Tillman. A year prior, they also drafted another third-round wide receiver in David Bell. Since 2024, the Browns have only used one draft pick in the fifth round on a wide receiver: Jamari Thrash.
But no matter how you spin it, it’s been a while since they devoted premium resources there. The last top-90 draft pick the Browns used on a wide receiver was for Corey Coleman in the first round in 2016. If my math is correct, that was a while ago.
Now, the Steelers haven’t drafted a first-round wide receiver since 2006, which is an extremely long time ago. But they have hardly shied away from the position, even if their last top-90 selection came in 2022. In the past decade, they have drafted six wide receivers in the second and third rounds. That’s including four second-round picks, among them one top-50 selection. George Pickens wasn’t far behind at 52nd overall.
As for the Browns, they have occasionally seen production from the wide receivers they have favored over draft picks. Jerry Jeudy had a 1,200-yard season in 2024, for example, making the Pro Bowl. But he barely cracked 600 yards last year, so they have to figure out the problem. Maybe it’s just Joey Porter Jr. throwing him off his game.