Cleveland Should Avoid Wide Receiver In The 2024 NFL Draft
Wide receivers are expected to be in high demand during this year’s draft. The position is not a major need for the Browns which means that they could capitalize on players at other positions who begin to slide.
In the past week, the Browns have hosted several wide receiver prospects for top-30 pre-draft visits. Former Oregon receiver Troy Franklin and former Western Kentucky receiver Malachi Corley are the two most notable players at the position to meet with Cleveland.
Franklin is my 35th overall prospect and ninth ranked wide receiver, while Corley is my 28th overall prospect and seventh ranked wide receiver in the 2024 class. If both players are selected where I value them, then they should be gone prior to Cleveland’s first selection at pick 54. If either is still available by the late second round, then the Browns will certainly be tempted to add to the receiver room. If they hold off and go elsewhere with this pick, then there is no chance that either receiver makes it back to them at pick 85.
The 2024 wide receiver class is one of the best classes in not only recent memory but perhaps history. It will be interesting to look back in a few years and see how many of these players turned into solid assets in the NFL.
Due to the prowess of this group as a whole, the safe assumption is that night one and night two will result in teams selecting receivers in quick succession. I anticipate that between 17-20 wide receivers will be selected in the first 100 picks of this year’s NFL Draft.
In 2023, 14 receivers were selected in the top 100 picks. In 2022, there were 16 receivers who heard their name called in the top 100 and in 2021, 15 receivers were taken in the top 100 selections.
With every selection in the draft, that means another talented player is still sitting on the board. Every single year there are players who get picked in a spot where they have no business still being available. Dawand Jones being available in the fourth round is the perfect example from a Browns vantage point.
