Browns supporters will weep at the former GM’s resurfaced assessment of the 2019 draft class
|Do you think the Cleveland Browns of 2023 could benefit from a wide receiver such as AJ Brown, DK Metcalf, or Debbie Samuel?
They had a chance to draft them in the 2019 NFL Draft, but based on a previously unreleased video featuring former general manager John Dorsey, it appears that the front office of the team didn’t believe there was a “marquee receiver” available.
For the Browns and general manager John Dorsey, the 2019 NFL Draft was a bit of a disaster. Because of the Odell Beckham Jr. trade, the team was deprived of a first-round selection, and of the seven players they did select, two have already left the league and none are still with the Browns.
Worst of all, Dorsey is caught on camera claiming that the lack of excellent receivers in the draft is why he traded for Beckham. Boy, was he mistaken.
“After Round 1 in 2019, there really wasn’t a marquee receiver, per se,” Dorsey stated at a press conference. “Some receivers will start to come off the board tomorrow.
Regarding the first-round pass-catchers, Dorsey was correct. At No. 25, the Oklahoman Marquise “Hollywood” Brown is a mediocre player at best, while Arizona State’s N’Keal Harry (No. 32, the New England Patriots) was a huge bust.
But now, three of the NFL’s top players at their position are wide receivers (WRs) who came “peeling off the board” in Round 2.
To be fair to Dorsey, the San Francisco 49ers selected Deebo Samuel of South Carolina at No. 36, meaning the Browns, at No. 46, had no chance without a trade-up. But five Pro Bowl wide receivers were selected after Cleveland selected Greedy Williams, an LSU cornerback.