Former USC quarterback Sam Darnold is apparently a “lock” to be the top pick by the Cleveland Browns in the 2018 NFL draft.
Multiple people have reported that Darnold will be the first quarterback and player taken off of the board when the draft starts April 26.
Fwiw: Team picking in the top 5 to me “he [Darnold] is a lock to them [Browns] at #1…”
— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) March 21, 2018
“Darnold is the favorite to go #1. I’ll be shocked if he isn’t the pick” – NFL director of college scouting to me just now
(I agree)
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) March 21, 2018
The Browns even hyped him up on their own Twitter account after his pro day in the rain Wednesday afternoon.
Sam Darnold was launching dimes at his Pro Day … in the pouring rain
: @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/0VbjOM2rgq
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) March 21, 2018
I said the Browns should take Barkley first overall and then snag a quarterback at four because I don’t see a ton of talent difference between the quarterbacks at the top.
Well, it looks like the Browns won’t be taking my advice, and instead are locked in on Darnold. It’s not a bad move by any metric. Darnold is a gunslinger, had a great arm and has the blue-collar work mentality that I want in my quarterback.
Will he turn around the Browns on day one? No, he won’t. It’s going to take some time to get Darnold accustomed to the NFL game, and the Browns should take their time. Don’t do what they did with Manziel and force him to play long before he was ready.
I look forward to following Darnold’s development if these reports turn out to be true.