The New England Patriots were silent on Day 1 of the 2017 NFL Draft. They’ll just have to settle for hanging onto the NFL’s best backup quarterback while maintaining one of the league’s best secondaries — for now, at least.
The Cleveland Browns and Houston Texans didn’t bite for Jimmy Garoppolo, and the New Orleans Saints didn’t make a move for Malcolm Butler — at least on Thursday night. They still have a high second-round pick Friday.
Here’s who the Browns, Saints and Texans picked in Round 1 instead of trading with the Patriots.
CLEVELAND BROWNS
Round 1, Pick 1: DE Myles Garrett, Texas A&M
Round 1, Pick 25: Safety Jabrill Peppers, Michigan (acquired along with first- and second-round picks in 2018 from Texans for 12th overall pick)
Round 1, Pick 29: TE David Njoku, Miami (acquired from Green Bay Packers for 33rd and 108th overall picks)
— The Browns still don’t have a quarterback. It’s at least worth noting they have two second-round picks Friday, and they own two first-round picks and three second-round picks in 2018. It seems unlikely the Patriots would deal Garoppolo on Friday, but if they franchise-tag him next offseason, the Browns still could eventually deal for him.
— Garrett was the right pick at No. 1 overall. Peppers is an interesting selection at No. 25, as he enters the NFL in its substance-abuse program after failing his drug test at the NFL Scouting Combine for having a diluted sample. Njoku is a crazy athletic project at tight end.
— The Browns grabbed three players with fifth-year options, which is ideal for their rebuilding project. (Is rebuild the right word for the Browns? Maybe just build is a better choice.)
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS
Round 1, Pick 11: CB Marshon Lattimore, Ohio State
Round 1, Pick 32: OT Ryan Ramczyk, Wisconsin
— The Saints likely are out on Butler after grabbing Lattimore in the first round, since they now have the rookie and Delvin Breaux as their starting cornerbacks. The Saints own the 42nd overall pick in the second round if they’re still interested, but that might not be enough to pry Butler away from the Patriots. Lattimore was expected to go much higher than 11th overall.
— Ramczyk seems to be a good value pick at the end of the first round. He was ranked as a middle first-rounder coming into the night.
HOUSTON TEXANS
Round 1, Pick 12 (acquired from Browns for No. 25 pick in 2017, first- and second-round picks in 2018): QB Deshaun Watson, Clemson
— The Texans traded up to No. 12 to pick Watson, meaning they are 100 percent out on Garoppolo. Watson is a proven winner and wound up being the third quarterback off the board after North Carolina’s Mitchell Trubisky went to the Chicago Bears (at No. 2) and Texas Tech’s Patrick Mahomes II was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs (at No. 10)
— The Texans reportedly were interested in Butler for a second-round pick. It seems unlikely the 57th overall pick would bring Butler to Houston, but perhaps the Texans still could package picks in a trade for him.
Thumbnail photo via Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports Images
