![\"David](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2243060291-e1776078503653.jpg\")
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
David Bailey #31 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders met with the Cleveland Browns before the NFL draft.<\/p>\n
Of all the positions the Cleveland Browns<\/a> appear to have well-covered as we plunge deeper into the 2026 NFL offseason, edge rusher would seem to be at the top of the list, a spot Cleveland need not be much concerned about. They\u2019ve got the best one in the game right now\u2013and perhaps of all time\u2013in Myles Garrett<\/a>, and with Alex Wright<\/a> having just re-upped on a three-year, $33 million contract<\/a>. Thus, seeing star Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey crop up on the list of NFL<\/a> draft prospects the Browns have had in for Top 30 visits is somewhat of a surprise.<\/p>\n But Bailey did, in fact, visit the Browns, despite a lack of need there. The chance that Bailey could fall to No. 6, where Cleveland first picks, is a longshot but not out of the realm of possibility. Arvell Reese from Ohio State is considered the top prospect on the edge, and after that either Bailey or Miami\u2019s Rueben Bain is likely to be a Top 5 pick.<\/p>\n Bailey was an All-American who led the nation with 14.5 sacks last year.<\/p>\n Picking David Bailey in NFL Draft Could Affect Myles Garrett<\/p>\n It is possible that Bailey will be the best player available when the Browns pick at No. 6, and if they\u2019re truly sticking with the idea that they need to take the best player when he\u2019s on the board\u2013despite such glaring needs for receivers and offensive linemen\u2013there\u2019s a chance Cleveland winds up with Bailey.<\/p>\n Naturally, that would be something of a sensitive pick, given the rumblings in the past three weeks around Garrett, and whether the Browns would\/are considering trading him. The team and Garrett made an adjustment in his contract that reportedly makes him an easier player to trade, but at the same time, the Browns have denied that moving Garrett is their goal.<\/p>\n Still, it is hard to imagine the Browns going to training camp with Garrett, a $40 million per year edge on one side, and Wright, an $11 million per year edge on the other, and the No. 6 pick Bailey in the mix there, too. Something would have to give.<\/p>\n GettyMyles Garrett, Browns<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Will Browns Stick With Best Player Available Strategy?<\/p>\n NFL draft gurus generally have Bailey slotted between No. 3 and No. 9 in most mock drafts. Despite four years and 46 collegiate games (Bailey was at Stanford before his one year at Tech), Bailey is still considered a work-in-progress and one scenario could have the Browns choosing Bailey, letting him be mentored by Garrett for a year, then trading Garrett next offseason.<\/p>\n At The Athletic, Dane Brugler has Bailey slotted in as the No. 7 overall prospect<\/a>. Pro Football Focus rates him No. 6 overall.<\/a><\/p>\n That\u2019s player ratings. Mock drafts, reflecting positional value, have Bailey a notch higher because edge rushers are at a premium. ESPN\u2019s Peter Schraeger<\/a>, in fact, has Bailey going the highest, at No. 2 to the Jets<\/a>.<\/p>\n Wrote Schrager: \u201cThis will likely be either Bailey or Ohio State\u2019s\u00a0Arvell Reese \u2014 New York was 31st in sacks last season with 26 \u2014 but I have to think Bailey is the guy for the Jets. He is a polished pass rusher with proven production, tying for the FBS lead in sacks (14.5) in 2025. He can be a Day 1 disrupter off the edge.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tSean Deveney<\/a> is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Browns\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty David Bailey #31 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders met with the Cleveland Browns before the NFL…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":865507,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2054],"tags":[86,85,54,2337,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-865506","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cleveland-browns","8":"tag-browns","9":"tag-cleveland","10":"tag-cleveland-browns","11":"tag-clevelandbrowns","12":"tag-football","13":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116397200300230600","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/865506","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=865506"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/865506\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/865507"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=865506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=865506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=865506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Myles](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1776080180_623_myles-garrett-cleveland-browns_551904.jpg\")
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