Hype grows for Browns to pick Wyoming QB
ESPN analyst Kiper predicts Allen will be selected No. 1.
The buildup CLEVELAND — to the NFL draft remains in its infancy, but the drumbeat for the Browns to pick Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen at No. 1 overall is growing louder.
The hype came to the forefront Thursday when ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. predicted in his first mock draft of the year that the Browns will choose Allen with the top selection and Penn State running back Saquon Barkley at No. 4 overall April 26.
New Browns general manager John Dorsey will likely pick a quarterback first overall, and the thought it’ll be Allen instead of Josh Rosen of UCLA and Sam Darnold of Southern California is becoming increasingly popular among draft analysts. Kiper has the New York Giants picking Rosen at No. 2 and the Denver Broncos nabbing Darnold at No. 5.
“All three of these kids are in the mix to be the No. 1 pick,” he said during a conference call. “But right now just because of the way Allen finished the season, I gave him the nod.” Kiper isn’t the only one. Last month, ESPN.com senior writer Ian O’Connor wrote on Twitter that an NFC player personnel executive is “convinced” the Browns will take Allen at No. 1. On Jan. 1, Sports Illustrated’s Peter King wrote a veteran college scout told him, “I believe there is no way Cleveland, at No. 1, will pass on Josh Allen. This is [Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson] Wentz reincarnated. Allen’s a perfect Dorsey quarterback. Just watch.”
What could help Allen is he’ll be practicing for the Senior Bowl and playing in the game next week in Mobile, Ala., like Wentz did two years ago.
Although the Browns declined to coach in the showcase this year, Dorsey, coach Hue Jackson and several other members of the organization are planning to attend.
Rosen and Darnold won’t be among the quarterbacks participating, but Allen and Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield are on board. Kiper has Mayfield going to Washington at No. 13.
If Allen has a strong showing in Alabama, the speculation about him joining the Browns will undoubtedly become rampant.
“I went with Allen for the fact that he finished strong, he had the big [bowl] game against Central Michigan and he’s got the physical capability to do the job in the weather conditions like Ben Roethlisberger [of the Pittsburgh Steelers] and Carson Wentz, quarterbacks he’ll be compared to for that size and the physicality and the arm strength and mobility and the toughness and the competitiveness for playing in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Baltimore every year,” Kiper said.
Kiper said ESPN’s Dec. 24 report that Rosen would like to avoid the Browns and prefers the Giants over them was “a minor factor” in his thinking.
“Things can change in that regard,” Kiper said. “I don’t know the Browns, if they really like a quarterback, really care about that. He’s not going to sit out the year, and you can very easily, with conversations, change things. I think that if he would look at the Cleveland Browns’ personnel and the fact that you have John Dorsey as a GM, he might be changing his thought process just a bit.”
Kiper said Rosen is the most polished pocket passer of the bunch. But Allen is the best from a “physical talent standpoint,” the analyst said.
“From the pure passer, from a getting under center, three-, five-, seven-step drops, the most artistic, picture-perfect, pure passing quarterback is Josh Rosen,” Kiper said. “But he’s got durability issues. He had the shoulder surgery two years ago, missed half the season. [He had] two concussions this year, [spent] 32 days in concussion protocol [and] sat out their bowl game.”
As for Darnold, most analysts consider him the early front-runner to become the top pick.
“Darnold just didn’t have the great year he anticipated,” Kiper said. “He came into the year looking like the clearcut No. 1 pick overall, struggled, some bad habits were developed, made some bad decisions, some poor throws, some ill-advised throws, a lot of fumbles, ball security was an issue, holding the ball with one hand like a loaf of bread in the pocket. There are some things he needs to clean up and cut back and cut down on the turnovers. That’s why he dropped in this mock to the third quarterback coming off the board.”
There are plenty of knocks on Allen, too. The biggest one is he completed just 56.2 percent of his career passes despite playing in the Mountain West Conference.
“You’ve got to look beyond his stats. Stats are for losers, in my opinion, in a lot of ways,” Kiper said. “The kid won. You can say, ‘Well, look at his record.’ When he was out there, they won football games.”