Myles Garrett may have secured his status as the 2017 NFL Draft’s top overall pick for the Cleveland Browns. Thanks to a display of pure dominance and strength at defensive end Garrett will be hard to pass up. The Browns have picks 1 and 12 in the first round, so they have some interesting choices to make. Can they afford to pass on Garrett?
Garrett, an impressive 6’5 272-pound edge rusher from Texas A&M, ran an astounding 4.64 in his first 40-yard dash attempt, the fifth-best ever for a lineman in Indianapolis.
Just when it looked like Deshaun Watson and Mitchell Trubisky staked their claim to be selected No.1 overall by Cleveland, Garrett put on a display of power, agility and talent on par with former top overall pick in current Houston Texans defensive end Jadeveon Clowney and recent Super Bowl champion defensive end DeMarcus Ware.
Clowney—six pounds lighter than Garrett—and was drafted No.1 overall out of South Carolina, ran a 4.53. Ware, 21 pounds lighter than Garrett, ran a 4.65, per Fox Sports’ Cameron DaSilva and CBS Sports’ Dane Brugler.
Additionally, Garrett also recorded a 41-inch vertical.
Yes. Somewhere in Berea, droll-filled jaws were being picked up of the floor and Garrett’s name was formally scribbled onto the Browns draft card.
Just when a seemingly easy—and obvious—selection for the Cleveland Browns, got a lot tougher thanks to Garrett’s impressive display. In his three years down in College Station, the 21-year-old Garrett recorded 48.5 tackles for loss, 31 sacks, 35 QB hits and 98 QB hurries, per PFF College Football.
Now imagine THAT package in a Browns uniform.
Pass rusher and quarterback two glaring areas of need for Cleveland. One could argument there is an ongoing debate inside of Berea as to which direction the Browns may go. Do they take perhaps the next great pass rusher who can help their anemic pass rush in Garrett, and run the risk of incurring the wrath and fury of their vocal fan base in passing on a hometown product who wants to play for his beloved Browns in Mitchell Trubisky?
His recent video pleading for his home-state Dallas Cowboys to trade for him may have rubbed some the wrong way. However, Garrett is a premium “war daddy” on defense that the Browns can ill afford to pass on. The term, which is a term used by Southern football coaches to describe a freakishly talented and seemingly unblockable defensive player, was used by Cowboys owner Jerry Jones when talking about the need to draft players.
Could Garrett be the Browns war daddy?
Hmm…
Picture a Browns defensive line composed of Garrett, Jamie Meder, Danny Shelton and Emmanuel Ogbah. That front four would create headaches for quarterbacks like hated long-time nemesis and tormentor Ben Roethlisberger. That sort of pressure and you get why taking a player of Garrett’s talent level is so appealing to Cleveland.
Selecting Trubisky Could solve Cleveland’s long-standing ailment of identifying it’s franchise savior. However, perhaps it is not in the cards for the two to form a proper union. If he falls to No.12. Then things might get interesting. Should San Francisco at No.2 and Chicago at No.3 pass, don’t rule out the prospect of seeing a trade up. Cleveland could jump back up to either No.4 with Jacksonville or No.5 with Tennessee to grab him.
A potential first round haul of both Garrett and Trubisky solves two of Cleveland’s biggest problem’s while reinvigorating a jaded fanbase in search of a savior. A player of his caliber could be the cornerstone on defense teams build around.
Not saying that it will happen, but as pop star Elle Goulding once sang, anything could happen. Especially draft day.
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