Think back to the 2011 draft when the Browns traded down. By surrendering the opportunity to draft WR Julio Jones at No. 6, they gained three picks in 2011 (Nos. 27, 59, 124) and two more in 2012 (Nos. 22, 118).

If I'm a Browns fan, I'm excited about the team restocking the shelves with those five picks. We can even quantify this bonanza by using the league's draft value table.

http://www.draftcountdown.com/features/Value-Chart.php/

Running the numbers, we get:

-1600 + 680 + 310 + 48 + 780 + 58 = +276

Not a great gain in numerical value, but hey, that's potentially five players instead of one. If the Browns parlay that into three quality starters, it's a great deal.

But they can't turn around and start squandering picks. Not if they want to reap the benefits.

So let's look at what the Browns have done since. I don't care if the transactions directly involve the Atlanta-obtained selections or not. This is about where they net-out through all their draft machinations.

In the 2012 draft this past April, the brain trust of Holmgren and Heckert moved up one spot to No. 3 by trading away four picks (Nos. 4, 118, 139, 211). That was to make absolutely sure that they could select RB Trent Richardson, even though the risk was infinitesimal. He was going to be there anyway, so in effect they gave up three picks for no reason.

Running the numbers again:

-58 + -36.5 + -7 = -101.5

Nope, I'm not counting the values of picks Nos. 3 and 4 because the Browns were going to select Richardson anyway. The more important arithmetic, though, is that they threw away four warm bodies to get one.

You see where this is going, and there's more. Now with the supplemental draft just completed, we see that the Browns obtained WR Josh Gordon for a... 2nd round pick! For crying out loud, that means they give up their 2nd rounder in 2013, which should likely fall in the top 40. Based on the apparent consensus on Gordon, he's maybe a mid-level third rounder. So let's guesstimate and say that the Browns, in effect, gave up a No. 38 selection for a No. 79.

Taking liberties, we run the numbers again:

-520 + 195 = -325

And the grand total:

276 - 101.5 - 325 = -150.5

Yep, with Josh Gordon it all comes full circle. Give up a blue chipper at wide receiver and end up with a knucklehead at wide receiver. He's the extra warm body they net-out with thanks to all their draft trade contortions. And he can bookend the other knucklehead at wide receiver they took in the 2nd round last year (Greg Little).

Yeah, they now have a blue chip running back, but they could have had a blue chipper at wide receiver. Are they really better off? So much for that bonanza of draft picks.

I feel for the Browns fans. They remind me too much of us.

I will never in my life feel sorry for a Clowns fan.
They deserve everything they get.


http://murf-seriously.blogspot.com/

Great analysis. During the draft I was trying to keep track of who they were taking with the Julio Jones ransom but nothing really jumped out. Once they had to reach for Weeden you knew they were squandering it. Richardson is theirs regardless. Now they just seem to be behind in picks again without an obviously upgraded team. So sad.

When the Chargers got a ton of picks for Eli you knew they were loading up (Rivers, Merriam, some late rounders).

Like you laid out this is really about value. They got good value (+276) for the Jones pick. Now what a smart team does is gets the most out of those picks. Multiple solid picks or even trades around getting more value but the Browns just slowly eroded all that away.


I didn't hate the Jones trade last year. But now that it's all said and done it feels like an opportunity lost.

There's always a chance Weeden, Little and Gordon take them to the promise land. If you're a Stains fan I guess that's the dream. I do think Richardson can be a beast though.

I did not like the Browns draft this year. They did not get great value for their picks.

Maybe not as bad as the Bengals misuse of their second first round pick, but pretty bad.

The 2011 "blockbuster" trade wasn't as big of a value gain for the Browns as I had thought. The +276 points is the equivalent of a late 2nd rounder. Not bad, but not too good to pass up. The prime motivation for H&H had to be about plugging holes in the roster. Or so it would seem. And it really makes their unnecessary four-for-one trade this year seem so ridiculous. (An overall net gain of one pick between the two trades. Whoopee.)

Bo, the Weeden reach is a great point. None of the later mock drafts had him going in the 1st round. It shows even further loss in value if you believe he was going to be there in Round 2.

The difference between Nos. 22 and 37:

-780 + 530 = -250

Ouch.

Sam, I thought that taking Zeitler over DeCastro was a bone-headed move, at first. Then we pulled-up all the raves about Zeitler among the analysts.

http://www.network54.com/Forum/90650/thread/1335801112/Murf+the+Homer

There just aren't many analysts slamming the Bungs for that decision.

Yeah, you bring up a lot of good points.

This team has a ton of needs. A Ton.
They needed multiple picks and they got them.
Then they turn around and give them back for Richardson. That's probably the real issue here. The Vikings played them. They got paranoid. In doing so they lost a lot of opportunities with those picks. I'm not going to pretend I know whether this Gordon kid can play or not but it feels dirty. Like the Richardson trade they appear desperate. One step forward, two steps back.

Toss in the reaches with a sprinkling of character issues and it's hard not to smile. I'm with murf, can't feel sorry for them. It's also obvious that organisation is lacking patience.

It's also obvious that organisation is lacking patience.

Bingo. Hit the nail on the head. The Patriots always use this trading down ploy as well, but they tend to use it to their advantage. And in years that they stockpile high picks, if there is no one that they want, they just trade down again. Granted, their draft record hasn't been Steelers good recently, but it's been much better than Cleveland's.

I've said this before...my biggest gripe with the Browns is that they listen too much to their fans. Living here I truly do feel their frustration...but fans are fans are fans. You have to listen to the fans some, but you can't let them dictate EVERY QB decision, coaching change, etc. In hindsite, I have no idea why they fired Phil Savage as GM. I realize that Romeo's last year was a disaster, but Savage actually built a nice little group of talent (Edwards, Winslow, Cribbs, DA at QB, Jamal Lewis at RB, D'Qwell Jackson at LB, etc). But ownership firing both and handing the keys to Mangini for both coaching and personnel set this franchise back for years. However, the current Holmgren/Heckert regime is not making things better with their kneejerk reactions (again, putting a lot of the eggs in the QB position for someone who was a reach...very MB type of move!!!)

Richardson may or may not turn out to be the real deal. If he turns out to be the next AP then their draft was a win. However, if he does not, I'm not sold on their other first round picks...

Psycho--man--replace all the dipwads on ESPN--that was f*cking great....

"Bo, the Weeden reach is a great point."


Reach?!??!?!?!? Understatement. Stretch? Not even Plastic Man could stretch that far. Browns should have traded up to get "3". Just a dumbazzed move. I'm going to say this again--THE ANALYST DURING THE DRAFT THAT SAID SOMETHING ABOUT WEEDEN BEING "FRESH" WAS JUST DUMB.

THE GUY IS F*CKING OLDER THAN MOST OF US!!!!!!

I feel like I could probably be this guy's "Wingman" on a "hard night" of drinking Prune-flavored beer at the old foggie's bar.

So once again--WHY SELECT A GUY THAT'S 5 YEARS OLD THAN YOUR STARTER AS THE NEXT FRANCHISE QB?!??!?!?!? This QB could be Over The Hill (30) by the time he gets his 1st start.

"Somewhere Rust Belty"

Now that some f*cking punchline. That gets a 10. Siscol and Ebbert (dig the one that is dead up) give it 4 Thumbs Up (two are permanently rigor mortis'd)!!!!!


LMAO!!!!!


"So he got fired? Big deal. It's happened to the best of us. So he got kicked out of his house by his 400 lb'ed wife?!?!? That's probably better for him anyways."-OldSchooler on ChrisMBHater's absence