The rules are the same for everyone.
That's been the consistent thing we've heard from the Browns ever since the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, which has turned life upside down and sent most everyone home in hopes of slowing the spread of the virus. Most NFL facilities have been shuttered for the past month, and they'll remain that way for the 2020 NFL Draft. The shots of packed rooms full of team executives, coaches and more will be replaced by ... whatever it looks like in the general manager's home office.
"I think it is just more different, right?" Browns executive vice president of football operations and general manager Andrew Berry said last week. "It is more a different environment than any team has operated under, but all teams have faced the same challenges. From my perspective, we are going to be prepared and ready to go regardless of the circumstances. I feel confident that we are going to have a very high-quality draft. We have a really strong support staff that has been working through a number of creative and effective solutions that we have used already throughout the free agency and draft preparation process. I have full confidence that we are going to be ready to go here in two weeks."
The players who would have been walking across the stage in Las Vegas will be homebound, too. The NFL announced last week 58 players would "virtually participate" in this year's draft. The list features most of the big names and includes all of the players who have been linked in some way to the Browns at No. 10.
Speaking of ... here are the latest projections for what the Browns might do with that pick.
Of note: Brugler doesn't rule out the Browns making a move back into the later part of the first round and instead acquiring a tackle such as Boise State's Ezra Cleveland.
Of note: Wills likely would be making a position switch wherever he lands in this year's draft. He spent his entire college career at right tackle.
Of note: This simulation predicted three QBs and a WR would be taken in the first nine picks.
Of note: Wilson expects the Browns to address the safety position in the second round with the selection of LSU's Grant Delpit.
Of note: Trapasso expects a whopping four QBs to be selected in the first nine picks.
Of note: Renner writes the Browns would be choosing Thomas over Wills in this spot because of his experience at left tackle.
Of note: Like Wilson, Easterling also predicts the Browns will take Delpit in the second round.
Of note: Sobleski considers Thomas to be "plug and play" and a good fit for Kevin Stefanski's wide-zone scheme.
