It’s wide receiver by a wide margin
There has been a lot of discussion as to what position area should be the Browns’ top priority in the NFL Draft.
It started out as, hands down, wide receiver, and still seems to be the case, although edge rusher and, lately, even interior defensive linemen, have jumped into the equation.
This is simple, for while a case can be made for the latter two areas and the Browns definitely need to get some players there with their top picks, the No.1 need is at wide receiver — still by a wide margin — and they need to make sure their top choice is used to take a player there.
Oh, sure, there has to be good value with every pick in the draft, regardless of what position it addresses — that’s obvious; it is a given — but with everything being equal, wide receiver is clearly the biggest need. It isn’t even close.
Again, the NFL, as with college football and even down to the high schools, is an offensive game and has been for over 40 years when every rule change the league made began to give something to the offense and take something away the defense . That’s because every time they survey their fans, it’s clear that they want to see scoring first and foremost.
The Browns need to score a lot more points to get to where they want to go.The best way to do that is to pump up their struggling passing attack, because within the fact the NFL is an offensive game, there is the fact that it is a game ruled by passing. As such, the Browns desperately need a home-run-hitter, a speedy wide receiver who can run downfield and make plays, taking the top of the defense.
They need what they were looking for in the 1986 draft, and found, with Webster Slaughter. His arrival changed the passing attack, which in turn changed the offense and which in turn changed the team, allowing it to make three appearances in the FC Championship Game in four years.
An edge rusher isn’t going to transform the team like that, and neither would an interior defensive lineman.
Really, it’s no more complicated than that.
By Steve King
