The first round of the 2018 NFL Draft is a little more than a day away, so naturally, the rumors are flying at a frantic pace.
While Lousiville quarterback Lamar Jackson has been the focal point of many rumors, along with the New England Patriots, there still is very little concrete evidence regarding who the Cleveland Browns will take with the first overall selection Thursday night.
First, it was rumored to be Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen. But that turned into USC signal-caller Sam Darnold which morphed into 2017 Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield.
So who will it be?
Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com has the latest information, as she reported Wednesday, citing two league sources, that the Browns are deciding between two of the top quarterbacks: Allen and Mayfield.
“The Browns have given strong consideration to all of the four top quarterbacks in the draft — Allen, Mayfield, Sam Darnold and Josh Rosen — but the choices seem to be narrowing to the cannon-armed passer from Wyoming and the Heisman Trophy winner from Oklahoma, the sources say,” Cabot writes.
Cabot also reported that while many of the draft experts are predicting Darnold to have his name called first, the Browns have “cooled” on the 20-year-old QB.
After going 0-16 during the 2017 season, the Browns need to nail both the No.1 and No. 4 overall picks. While Allen has all the measurables, he struggled with accuracy throughout his time at Wyoming and was ineffective against Iowa and Oregon — the only two Power Five schools he faced.
Mayfield, on the other hand, electrified during his Heisman campaign, not only torching teams in the defensively-challenged Big 12, but also lighting up Ohio State and Georgia, both of whom were loaded with elite talent on defense.
Cleveland has had 27 different quarterbacks since the city reclaimed a franchise in 1999, and Tyrod Taylor is set to be the 28th when the 2018 season kicks off.
If the Browns want their horrific quarterback carousel to end, they might want to pull the trigger on Mayfield and let someone else gamble on Allen.
