The Cleveland Browns have some key games coming up on the schedule in relation to the 2026 NFL Draft.
First up is the Miami Dolphins, who come into Sunday’s tilt at Huntington Bank Field as one of five teams that currently have just one win.
The New York Jets, currently the league’s only winless team, is on the docket for Week 10, followed by the one-win Baltimore Ravens in Week 11, the two-win Las Vegas Raiders in Week 12, and the one-win Tennessee Titans in Week 14.
Those games will go a long way
toward determining the draft order next spring, with the Browns, currently at 1-5, holding a pair of first-round selections, their own and the one from the 4-2 Jacksonville Jaguars.
In most NFL cities, it may be a bit early to start projecting how the draft order will shake out, but this is Cleveland, where draft talk is always in fashion.
With that in mind, let’s check out this week’s first-round mock draft from Trevor Sikkema at Pro Football Focus, who looked at players who are “making first-round caliber plays” through seven weeks of the college football season.
With their own pick, projected to be No. 2 overall, the Browns take their latest shot at fixing the quarterback issue by selecting Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza:
Mendoza had some fans coming into the season after showing some promise in 2024 at Cal – though he did produce more turnover-worthy plays than big-time throws. This season at Indiana, he’s taken his game to a more consistent level with five big-time throws, three turnover-worthy plays and an 81.0 passing grade. He also might have the best overall arm talent of the top quarterbacks right now, outside of South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers.
While quarterback is priority No. 1 for the Browns, the offensive line, which is filled with old and injured players in the final years of their contracts, can be classified as priority 1-A. And with the No. 21 overall selection, the Browns address the situation with the selection of Alabama offensive lineman Kadyn Proctor:
Proctor has had a decent start to his 2025 campaign. The supersized 6-foot-7 offensive tackle has earned a 78.6 run-blocking grade with an 82.5 blocking grade on zone plays. He has struggled at times as a pass protector, especially with speed, given how big he is, so he might be a guard at the next level. However, if he is, he can be a very good one, given his unique strength-athleticism combination at his size.
That looks like it would be a productive night from general manager Andrew Berry if the first round actually played out that way. Mendoza upped his profile after Indiana’s win last week against Oregon, and bookend tackles of Proctor (6-foot-7 and 366 pounds) and Dawand Jones (6-foot-8 and 374 pounds) could be quite the tandem if Jones could stay healthy.
And at 6-foot-5, Mendoza would have no problem seeing over them!
The Browns currently hold 10 selections in the 2026 NFL Draft:
- Their own selections in Rounds 1 through 5.
- A first-round pick courtesy of the trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars on draft night.
- A fifth-round pick from the Raiders as part of the Pickett trade.
- A fifth-round pick from the Bengals as part of the Flacco trade.
- A seventh-round pick from the Jaguars as part of the Newsome trade.
- A seventh-round pick from the Seattle Seahawks as part of the 2024 trade for center Nick Harris.
What do you think, Browns fans? Would you be happy with a first round of Mendoza and Proctor? Let us know in the comments!
