The NFL draft is coming on Thursday and a number of teams are finalizing their draft boards and the Oakland Raiders are an interesting team to watch, as some rumors have the team looking at Derek Carr later in the draft over Blake Bortles and that could leave the Cleveland Browns to pick Bortles or Sammy Watkins while targeting another players later they like in Carlos Hyde at running back.
The Browns pick at number four and they could go after a quarterback, while the Raiders have some major decision to make at five, as they could look to trade back if the players they like are gone. Cleveland picks right away in the second round and with three picks in the top 35 they may look to draft a player like Hyde.
The Cleveland Browns are coming into the NFL draft with a top five pick once again and rumors have them taking a quarterback at some point and they have looked at Blake Bortles and Derek Carr as potential options and while they have also targeted Sammy Watkins and Marqise Lee at wide receiver, the team may avoid that position early and could go after a back like Carlos Hyde in the second round.
The Browns come into the draft in a favorable position, as they have three picks within the top 35 selections in May and that gives them the chance to go after players they want and it opens up doors if they want to trade as well. According to Pro Football Talk, the Browns are looking at Carr as a potential option with their second first round pick, as that is at number 26, since they likely won't use the number four pick on him, but there also is another alternative.
The report writes that the team could move down to take Carr by trading picks, meaning it could be before that second pick, but the Browns could get some value out of it. Taking Carr at four is a bit of a stretch, especially with players like Bortles and Sammy Watkins possibly being available and that is something the Browns will need to consider. Carr has been moving up draft boards and the Browns may not be able to guarantee themselves the chance at getting him and that could mean trouble.
Carlos Hyde could be a nice hometown option to pick to pair along with Ben Tate after they signed him from the Texans. Hyde should be there in the second round and he had a fantastic season with over 1,500 yards and 16 touchdowns for Ohio State.
The team is coming into the draft looking for a quarterback and this comes after the Browns got rid of both Brandon Weeden and Jason Campbell in the offseason. Brian Hoyer was solid for the team last season before getting injured and while he has the chance to be the starter, he has to get healthy first this offseason. According to PFT, Carr will be visiting with the Browns and he has been looked at as a very solid option for teams, as he passed for over 5,000 yards last season and had 50 touchdowns at Fresno State.
The team picked Weeden at number 22 overall back in 2012 and they could make a similar pick this season and the last QB that was taken fourth overall was Philip Rivers and now the Browns have to see how the top of the draft plays out. Having the fourth and 26th picks gives the team some flexibility and they also picked up extra picks last season during the draft. Bortles has a strong arm and he could be the option for the team, but it remains to be seen when they will take a QB