We have finally hit 2026 NFL draft week. While many will wait until Monday to make that statement, officially, Sunday starts the week for most people, which means Cleveland Browns fans can continue to get nervous and excited about what their favorite team is going to do. The New York Giants were surprised, others were stunned, when the Cincinnati Bengals kicked things off early by giving up the 10th overall pick for DT Dexter Lawrence.
For the Browns, the focus has been on the offensive side of the ball.
Whether it is selecting WR Carnell Tate or any number of offensive tackles early, Cleveland fans have high hopes that the 2026 NFL draft will upgrade the poor play on one side of the ball. Unfortunately, according to NFL draft expert Justin Melo, there is only one elite prospect on that side of the ball this year:
I personally do not think there’s more than one. Jeremiyah Love is an elite prospect and he’s the ONLY elite prospect in this draft. There isn’t an elite offensive tackle or wide receiver, and those are usually the two offensive skill positions teams look to for elite prospects.
Teams can only select the players who are available, but it seems like most believe this is a deep draft with very few top prospects, which could lead to more trading than we’ve seen in the past. Melo’s note is similar to what we heard from Doug Farrar about this year’s draft overall. It is also important to note that how a player is as a prospect does not always predict their NFL success. Teams and analysts can only go by the information available now to try to predict the outcomes later.
Melo noted that he believes Francis Mauigoa, Spencer Fano, and Monroe Freeling are likely the first three offensive tackles taken off the board in this year’s draft.
You can read all of Melo’s thoughts on this year’s draft from his Q&A at SB Nation’s NFL Feed below:
Do you think the lack of elite offensive talent should make the Browns want to trade out of the top of the draft even more, or should they get the best prospect possible, even if they are not elite?
Join the conversation in SB Nation’s NFL Feed or in our comment section below
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