I am by no means an expert, but here is my grade of the first four picks the Browns made in this year's draft (later picks' grades will be posted tomorrow along with an overall draft grade). There are a few criteria by which I handed out my grades: did the player fill a need, what type of impact will they have on the team (both immediate and in the future), and when they were drafted (reach? value?).
Round 1 pick 7 Joe Haden (cornerback, Florida) - B-
I was a little miffed Eric Berry was taken off of the board two picks before the Browns could get their hands on him. This created an awkward situation for the Browns at the seventh pick. From what I have read before the draft, it did not appear as if anyone on their draft board was worthy of the seventh round pick (at least none that were available). Thus trading down made sense, but apparently no team made them a descent offer. Haden became the pick. He was widely regarded as the best corner in the draft, but his draft status took a hit when he ran a slow 40y dash at the combine. Considering the Browns had just traded for CB Sheldon Brown, the position was not one of great need for the team heading into the draft. The team must have adopted the strategy of taking the best player available for Haden to be the pick (something I cannot really complain about). The good news is that the Browns should have one of the best, young CB tandems in the league with Eric Wright and Joe Haden. The bad news, I think the Browns could have gotten Haden a few picks lower (again, I cannot blame the team too much considering a lack of a trade partner).
Round 2 pick 38 T.J. Ward (safety, Oregon) - B-
This pick surprised me considering some of the names that were still on the board (Jimmy Clausen, Colt McCoy, Taylor Mays). Initially, I was dumbfounded, but I warmed up Ward after doing a little bit of research. He is a big hitting safety who had fairly good football instincts when he played. The problem is that he has a history of being injured. Picking him here was a bit of a reach. This pick is saved from a lower grade because safety was a position of need heading into the draft and the potential for success on the field in the future.
Round 2 pick 58 Montario Hardesty (running back, Tennessee) - C+
When it was announced that the Browns traded up, I thought that it had to be for Colt McCoy, but I was mistaken. Instead they picked up the hard running Hardesty who lit up the SEC during his senior season. The price to pay was two fifth round picks and a third round pick in this year's draft. This was quite a price to pay for a running back that, despite complimenting the current Browns feature back (Jerome Harrison who is more of a finesse runner), did not fill a position of great need. He also was bitten often by the injury bug. I am hoping that he turns out to be the next Kevin Mack, but I have to give this pick a fairly low mark.
Round 3 pick 85 Colt McCoy (quarterback, Texas) A+
Prior to the draft, the talk was that the Browns would have to trade back up into the first round to grab McCoy. Instead they get their quarterback of the future in the middle of the third round. McCoy left Texas as the winningest quarterback in Division I history. He has an accurate arm and would fit well into the west coast offense (supposedly the Browns will be implementing this scheme). The one, major knock against him is that he did not play in a pro-style offense in college and will have to adjust his playing style. If the Browns had traded back into the first round for him, the grade would have been knocked down a couple of pegs due to inevitably losing picks in the trade and the pick being a reach in the first round. The McCoy pick receives a high grade because of where he was drafted (great value) and the potential that the Browns got their franchise quarterback for the next ten years.
Browns draft grades pt. 2
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