NFL Network's Ian Rapoport stated the obvious as he assessed the Browns' spot at No. 2 and No. 32 in this year's NFL Draft.
It's not a place the Browns want to be every year because it indicates the previous season didn't go as planned. Still, it's an enviable position, especially when the only team picking in front of Cleveland, the Tennessee Titans, are clearly not in the market for a quarterback.
"You have the opportunity, if they do look at the quarterback position, it's all in front of them," Rapoport said at last week's Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. "They'll have their pick of everyone they want in the draft and I think it's a great spot to be in to rebuild."
The Browns essentially hold two first-round picks in this year's draft because their second pick, which kicks off the second round Day 2, falls at No. 32 instead of 33 because the Patriots do not have a first-round pick.
Rapoport called it a position of immense power because of the value of the picks if Cleveland opted to trade one of them. Just a few years ago, St. Louis received three first-round picks and a second-rounder from Washington for the No. 2 pick.
The Browns received a future first-round and fourth-round pick from Buffalo in 2014 when they moved from No. 4 to No. 9. The higher the pick, the higher the price.
With speculation swirling about which quarterback the Browns would take at No. 2 if they opted to go in that direction, NFL Network's Albert Breer cautioned there might be an alternative way to approach the pick.
"I think No. 2 is too early for probably any of the quarterbacks this year, whether it's (Carson) Wentz or (Paxton) Lynch or (Jared) Goff," Breer said. "This is talking to people who are paid to actually evaluate this stuff. It sounds to me there's no Marcus Mariota this year. There's no Jameis Winston this year. You're looking at guys who have holes, so it's what you're most comfortable with and guys get pushed up the board."
Breer looked back at two recent drafts in particular to show quarterbacks a franchise can build around can be found at No. 32 and beyond.
In 2011, a year that saw Jake Locker, Christian Ponder and Blaine Gabbert selected within the first 12 picks, Pro Bowl quarterbacks Andy Dalton and Colin Kaepernick were snagged with back-to-back picks in the second round. In 2014, Teddy Bridgewater went 32nd and Derek Carr went 36th. Both were in this year's Pro Bowl.
"You don't need to reach on one, but if there's a guy you really like, you probably don't want to roll the dice that he wouldn't be there at 32," Breer said.
Wentz, a North Dakota State product, took center stage at last week's Senior Bowl. Surrounded by a number of quarterbacks anticipated to be Day 3 picks, Wentz, in many analysts' minds, solidified his status as a first-round pick and even had some link him to the Browns.
Lynch and Goff, both of whom entered the draft as underclassmen, will share the spotlight with him at the NFL Scouting Combine later this month.
"I know for the Browns, finding a way to fix the quarterback position now is a big deal," Breer said. "(Wentz) certainly seems like somebody that is going to be in a first-round discussion with probably three other guys. What you hear about him is he's an A-plus kid from a character standpoint, a good athlete for as big as he is. There's still some things you've got to work through. His accuracy wasn't all that consistent the first day out here. I heard he was pressing a little bit. He settled down a little bit since.
"There's a long way to go until April."
