The Cleveland Browns feel like an organization who have quickly arrived at a crossroads. The organization can either choose to invest the second overall pick to find a contingency plan for Deshaun Watson at quarterback or simply take the best player available.
Well, one ESPN Analyst believes the Cleveland Browns are set to land a potential replacement for Myles Garrett in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Browns Select Abdul Carter at No. 2 Overall in Latest ESPN Mock Draft
The Cleveland Browns will enter the 2025 NFL season with a big question mark at quarterback if Deshaun Watson is unable to take the field after sustaining an Achilles injury, but ESPN Analyst Field Yates does not see the organization taking Watsonâs successor with the second overall pick in the draft.
Yates said during a broadcast of his NFL Mock Draft 3.0, âIf the Browns do end up changing their stance and trading Myles Garrett, thereâs no perfect replacement for Myles Garrett, he might be the best defensive player on the planet, but in this draft class thereâs no question the best pass rusher is Abdul Carter.â
Carter was an exceptional producer during his time at Penn State, which included an impressive 12 sacks last season. Over his three years with the Nittany Lions, Carter racked up a total of 23 sacks in 42 games.
These sack totals become all the more impressive when you consider that Carter operated as both an edge rusher and off ball linebacker â which obviously means he wasnât rushing the quarterback on every single snap he took over his college career.
Carterâs 104 total tackles to go with 41 tackles for loss demonstrate his ability to make impact plays no matter what role a defensive coordinators asks him to play. His positional versatility makes him even more valuable as a prospect entering the NFL because this allows for a team to move him all over the defensive front and potentially generate mismatches against a specific weak link in an opposing offensive line unit.
Would Selecting Carter Mean Myles Garrett is Going to be Traded?
One would likely assume if the Browns are going to bypass addressing the other needs on the roster to select an edge rusher at No. 2 overall when they currently have the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year on the team that it would likely mean Myles Garrettâs days in a Brownsâ uniform are numbered.
To be fair, that logic doesnât seem too farfetched â but creating a pass rushing duo with both Garrett and Carter screaming off the edge to terrorize the elite quarterbacks of the AFC North regularly doesnât seem like a terrible strategy either.
The odds of Carter elevating this team into Super Bowl contention when big questions remain at quarterback does seem unlikely in a loaded AFC, which doesnât exactly help the sales pitch to convincing Garrett to stick it out for another year with the Browns considering his expressed desire to compete for a championship.
Carter is a great defensive prospect who would certainly help this talented defense potentially reach new heights if paired with Garrett, but I would definitely lean more towards Carter being a high-quality contingency plan if the organization elects to part ways with its star defensive player.
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