MY FIRST-ROUND PREDICTION FOR BROWNS?

By STEVE KING

Is it Rashod Bateman?
Is the big, talented Minnesota wide receiver the guy the Browns are targeting with the No. 26 overall pick in the first round of the NFL Draft in about a week?
Who knows if that’s the case — the Browns know although they’re not giving even a smidge of a hint — but I think he could well be the one.
In fact, if I had to predict what it is, I’d say Bateman without hesitation.
It just makes sense. It really does.
Every year after the draft when I look back at the player the Browns picked in the first round, I end up saying to myself, “Why didn’t I see that? There were clues all along, but I just didn’t pick up on them.”
The clues this time — I’m finally getting ahead of the curve after all these years — are these:
*The Browns need a young playmaking wideout. Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. are not going to be around forever.
*Browns General Manager Andrew Berry talks about drafting players who will position the team into the future, and Bateman does that. He can grow with quarterback Baker Mayfield for the next decade. They can be a great duo.
*This is an offensive game. While the Browns have spent the offseason rebuilding the defense, and rightfully so, after spending last offseason rebuilding the offense, it’s the offense that gets teams where they want to go. It has to be lethal week in and week out. The defense has to slow offenses down. not totally stop them. That’s not realistic.
*Do the Browns need a young edge rusher? Yes, and they’ll get one in this draft. But they need a young pass catcher more — a whole lot more.
I just hope Bateman is there for the taking. It’s impossible to say what will happen will happen in front of them in that first round.