Free agency never really ends in the NFL, but the majority of top-end talent is off the market after a busy few weeks.
Some teams made significant changes while others laid low. The Browns did a little of both, addressing needs at cornerback (Tramon Williams), defensive line (Randy Stark), wide receiver (Brian Hartline and Dwayne Bowe) and potentially landing a Day 1 starter at quarterback (Josh McCown) while remaining responsible and calculated with their spending.
How much those moves affected their draft board depends on who you ask.
12 - WR Kevin White (West Virginia)
19 - DT Danny Shelton (Washington)
Of note: Based on most other mock drafts, this would be viewed as too good to be true by most Browns fans. White, who was one of the stars at the NFL Combine, has been projected as high as No. 4 to the Raiders and Shelton has been tabbed as high as No. 7 to the Bears. Anything can happen on draft day, though. And if this does … oh my.
12 - Shelton
19 - OT Ereck Flowers (Miami)
Of note: Jeremiah, a former Browns scout, calls Flowers a Day 1 starter despite the fact he's one of the youngest players in the draft and despite the fact the Browns return starting right tackle Mitchell Schwartz. If anything, Flowers would provide competition for Schwartz while padding the depth on an offensive line that was thin beyond the starting five in 2014.
12 - Shelton
19 - Flowers
Of note: What's most interesting in Brooks' mock draft is how far he has quarterback Marcus Mariota falling. Though some have pegged Mariota to the Titans at No. 2, Brooks believes he'll fall to the Saints … at No. 13. That means, of course, the Browns would be passing on Mariota at No. 12.
12 - QB Marcus Mariota (Oregon)
19 - OL T.J. Clemmings (Pitt)
Of note: In this scenario, Baldinger believes the Browns will choose Mariota over a player such as wide receiver DeVante Parker. He also expects the Jets to take running back Todd Gurley at No. 6.
Round 1 - Pick 1 - QB Jameis Winston
Round 1- Pick 2- DE Leonard Williams
Round 1- Pick 3- OLB Dante Fowler
Round 1- Pick 4- WR Kevin White
Round 1- Pick 5- OLB Vic Beasley
Round 1- Pick 6- QB Marcus Mariota
Round 1- Pick 7- WR Amari Cooper
Round 1- Pick 8- DE Shane Ray
Round 1- Pick 9- OL Brandon Schreff
Round 1- Pick 10- OL LaEl Collins
Round 1- Pick 11- CB Trae Waynes
Round 1- Pick 12 - DT Danny Shelton The Browns could go Parker here if they want that big-three wide receiver, but I think with Shelton on the board, the defensive-minded Browns get their Haloti Ngata to solidify the interior of the defensive line.
Round 1- Pick 13- OLB Bud Dupree
Round 1- Pick 14- S Landon Collins
Round 1- Pick 15- WR DeVante Parker
Round 1- Pick 16- DL Malcolm Brown
Round 1- Pick 17- RB Todd Gurley
Round 1- Pick 18- WR Dorial Green-Beckham
Round 1- Pick 19 - OLB Randy Gregory The Browns stick on the defensive side of the ball and get the best pass rusher left on the board. He has incredible burst but will fall on draft day because of size concerns. Gregory would immediately upgrade the pass rush after solidifying the defensive line at 12. If the Browns do this, look for a wide receiver in the second round and some interior offensive line plus a tight end in rounds 3 or 4.
Round 1- Pick 20- CB Jalen Collins
Round 1- Pick 21- OLB Shaq Thompson
Round 1- Pick 22- CB Marcus Peters
Round 1- Pick 23- DL Eddie Goldman
Round 1- Pick 24- CB Kevin Johnson
Round 1- Pick 25- OL DJ Humphries
Round 1- Pick 26- WR Jalen Strong
Round 1- Pick 27- DE Arik Armstead
Round 1- Pick 28- OL Andrus Peat
Round 1- Pick 29- RB Melvin Gordon
Round 1- Pick 30- LB Erik Kendricks
Round 1- Pick 31- TE Maxx Williams
Round 1- Pick 32- CB Ronald Darby
12 - OL La'el Collins (LSU)
19 - DT Malcom Brown (Texas)
Of note: Collins played left tackle for the Tigers but projects as a right tackle in the NFL. He's also versatile enough to play guard if necessary. That sounds a lot like a certain Browns left guard, doesn't it?
12 - Shelton
19 - LB Alvin "Bud" Dupree (Kentucky)
Of note: In Brugler's eyes, the Browns would pass on Louisville wide receiver DeVante Parker at No. 12 to go with Shelton, who would join Phil Taylor and Ishmaa'ily Kitchen at nose guard. Dupree would be the fifth edge pass rusher off the board.
12 - Shelton
19 - WR Jaelen Strong (Arizona State)
Of note: With the additions of Bowe and Hartline, fewer and fewer analysts are projecting the Browns to take a wide receiver in the first round. Still, Prisco believes the Browns need a youthful injection at outside receiver.
Round 1- Pick 1- QB Jameis Winston
Round 1- Pick 2- LB Dante Fowler Jr.
Round 1- Pick 3- DL Leonard Williams
Round 1- Pick 4- WR Kevin White
Round 1- Pick 5- LB Vic Beasley
Round 1- Pick 6- QB Marcus Mariota
Round 1- Pick 7- LB Randy Gregory
Round 1- Pick 8- CB Trae Waynes
Round 1- Pick 9- OL Brandon Scherff
Round 1- Pick 10- WR Amari Cooper
Round 1- Pick 11- WR DeVante Parker
Round 1- Pick 12- DT Danny Shelton Shelton shined at the Senior Bowl. The big-three wide receivers in the draft – Amari Cooper, Kevin White and DeVante Parker – likely will be gone at that point and the Browns will focus on shoring up their run defense with the top available nose tackle.
Round 1- Pick 13- OLB Bud Dupree
Round 1- Pick 14- DB Landon Collins
Round 1- Pick 15- RB Todd Gurley
Round 1- Pick 16- WR Jaelen Strong
Round 1- Pick 17- RB Melvin Gordon
Round 1- Pick 18- DT Malcolm Brown
Round 1- Pick 19- OL Andrus Peat In the Cardinal's offense, Peat will come to the NFL pro-ready. The transition for him will be very easy to immediately go into a competition, whether it be at guard or tackle. He'll contribute and solidify that running game and protect whoever is the quarterback for the Browns.
Round 1- Pick 20- DB Kevin Jones
Round 1- Pick 21- OL Ereck Flowers
Round 1- Pick 22- DL Arik Armstead
Round 1- Pick 23- OL T.J. Clemmings
Round 1- Pick 24- DE Owamagbe Odighizuwa
Round 1- Pick 25- OL Lael Collins
Round 1- Pick 26- WR Devin Smith
Round 1- Pick 27- DT Eddie Goldman
Round 1- Pick 28- OL Cameron Erving
Round 1- Pick 29- LB Paul Dawson
Round 1- Pick 30- LB Eric Kendricks
Round 1- Pick 31- WR Dorial Green-Beckham
Round 1- Pick 32- WR Devin Funchess
12 - Mariota
19 - OL Cameron Erving (Florida State)
Of note: Erving might just be the most versatile offensive lineman in the entire draft. He can feasibly play all five spots on the offensive line, but the most intriguing aspect is his ability to play center. Though the Browns have Pro Bowl center Alex Mack, there's a need for some depth at the position.
12 - Mariota
19 - Brown
Of note: For Mariota to fall to the Browns at No. 12, the following teams with question marks at quarterback would be passing on him: Tennessee, Washington and the New York Jets.
12 - Shelton
19 - TE Maxx Williams (Minnesota)
Of note: The Browns currently boast just two true tight ends on their current roster: Gary Barnidge and Jim Dray. Williams is considered to be the top tight end prospect in the draft, but many mocks leave him completely out of the first round.
Round 1 – Pick 1 – QB Jameis Winston
Round 1 – Pick 2 – DE Leonard Williams
Round 1 – Pick 3 – OLB Dante Fowler
Round 1 – Pick 4 – WR Kevin White
Round 1 – Pick 5 – QB Marcus Mariota
Round 1 – Pick 6 – DE Shane Ray
Round 1 – Pick 7 – WR Amari Cooper
Round 1 – Pick 8 – OL Brandon Scherff
Round 1 – Pick 9 – CB Trae Waynes
Round 1 – Pick 10 – WR DeVante Parker
Round 1 – Pick 11 – DE Randy Gregory
Round 1 – Pick 12 – NG Danny In the right scheme, Shelton's combination of a stout body in the run game to go along with athleticism as a pass rusher could make him an eventual centerpiece of a defense. In Cleveland, the 339-pound Shelton not only could start right away but also have the potential to overhaul the Browns' defensive line.
Round 1 – Pick 13 – OLB Vic Beasley
Round 1 – Pick 14 – CB Jaelen Collins
Round 1 – Pick 15 – RB Melvin Gordon
Round 1 – Pick 16 – WR Jaelen Strong
Round 1 – Pick 17 – OL Andrus Peat
Round 1 – Pick 18 – DL Eddie Goldman
Round 1 – Pick 19 – OLB Bud Dupree Thus far into free agency, the Browns have yet to fill the void Jabaal Sheard left at outside linebacker. Enter Dupree, and then some. Perhaps no pass rusher in the draft has the former Kentucky Wildcat's combination of size (6-foot-4, 269 pounds) and speed (4.54 seconds in the 40-yard dash). Coach Mike Pettine said the team will place a premium on making the defense a dominate unit. Dupree coupled with Shelton put Pettine's beliefs into action.
Round 1 – Pick 20 – SS Landon Collins
Round 1 – Pick 21 – WR Dorial Green-Beckham
Round 1 – Pick 22 – CB Marcus Peters
Round 1 – Pick 23 – OL Lael Collins
Round 1 – Pick 24 – RB Todd Gurley
Round 1 – Pick 25 – OL D.J. Humphries
Round 1 – Pick 26 – WR Breshad Perriman
Round 1 – Pick 27 – DL Malcom Brown
Round 1 – Pick 28 – OL T.J. Clemmings
Round 1 – Pick 29 – LB Denzel Perryman
Round 1 – Pick 30 – TE Maxx Williams
Round 1 – Pick 31 – DL Arik Armstead
Round 1 – Pick 32 – DT Jordan Phillips
12 - WR DeVante Parker (Louisville)
19 - Brown
Of note: For the Browns to land Parker, the Minnesota Vikings would have to pass on him at No. 11. That might be tough to do with Parker's former college quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater, running things under center in Minnesota.
12 - Strong
19 - Collins
Of note: In this scenario, Shelton and the draft's top three receivers (Amari Cooper, White and Parker) would all be off the board by the time the Browns picked. They'd be passing on edge rushers Randy Gregory and Dupree in favor of Strong.
This article is part of the Road to the Draft series, driven by Liberty Ford.
Round 1 – Pick 1 – QB Jameis Winston
Round 1 – Pick 2 – QB Marcus Mariota
Round 1 – Pick 3 – DL Leonard Williams
Round 1 – Pick 4 – player name
Round 1 – Pick 5 – LB Vic Beasley
Round 1 – Pick 6 – LB Dante Fowler Jr.
Round 1 – Pick 7 – DT Danny Shelton
Round 1 – Pick 8 – LB Randy Gregory
Round 1 – Pick 9 – OL Brandon Scherff
Round 1 – Pick 10 – WR Kevin White
Round 1 – Pick 11 – WR DeVante Parker
Round 1 – Pick 12 – LB Shane Ray The Browns filled a number of holes through free agency but they weren't able to beef up their pass rush amid the loss of Sheard. That changes at pick No. 12, where the Browns will benefit from one of the draft's best crops of pass rushers in years by having the 2014 SEC Defensive Player of the Year fall in their lap.
Round 1 – Pick 13 – LB Alvin "Bud" Dupree
Round 1 – Pick 14 – DB Trae Waynes
Round 1 – Pick 15 – OL Andrus Peat
Round 1 – Pick 16 – WR Jaelen Strong
Round 1 – Pick 17 – RB Melvin Gordon
Round 1 – Pick 18 – DT Malcom Brown
Round 1 – Pick 19 – OL Lael Collins If Malcom Brown's around at 19, he's a more likely selection, but this is assuming he's gone. Collins was good enough to play left tackle in college football's toughest conference, projects as a right tackle in the NFL and is versatile enough to play guard. He'd bring a good injection of competition to multiple spots on an offensive line that is very good in the starting five but needs better depth.
Round 1 – Pick 20 – DL Arik Armstead
Round 1 – Pick 21 – OL Ereck Flowers
Round 1 – Pick 22 – DB Kevin Johnson
Round 1 – Pick 23 – OL T.J. Clemmings
Round 1 – Pick 24 – RB Todd Gurley
Round 1 – Pick 25 – OL D.J. Humphries
Round 1 – Pick 26 – DE Owamagbe Odighizuwa
Round 1 – Pick 27 – DT Eddie Goldman
Round 1 – Pick 28 – OL Cameron Erving
Round 1 – Pick 29 – S Landon Collins
Round 1 – Pick 30 – DB Marcus Peters
Round 1 – Pick 31 – WR Dorial Green-Beckham
Round 1 – Pick 32 – DT Jordan Phillips
