Two Teams Who Will Be Fighting For The No. 1 Pick
The NFL regular season is only a few day away. Some teams have made significant leaps of improvement while others have not. Here’s my prediction on those teams who have done little to improve themselves or are still in rebuilding mode. It may be poor drafting, new management and new regime or other factors. However, when talking about the worst of the worst, these are my top two teams who I believe will be fighting for the number one pick in Philadelphia in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Cleveland Browns
The team also has had trouble with drafting good first round players. This offseason, they got rid of two of their former first rounders. Barkevious Mingo (sixth overall in the 2013 Draft) was traded to the New England Patriots in exchange for a 2017 fifth round pick after three disappointing seasons with Cleveland.
Cleveland also just traded away 2014 first round pick Justin Gilbert. With Johnny Manziel (another 2014 first rounder) off the team, the Browns now are without both of their 2014 first round picks.
While Cleveland did have 14 picks in the 2016 draft, it will be hard to see them make a lot of noise this season. Jimmie Kaylor of CheatSheet.com agrees.
“The reality of the situation in Cleveland is that the Browns have holes all over their roster — despite having 14 picks in the 2016 NFL Draft — and they are still a long ways away from being competitive in the AFC North,” Kaylor says. “Expect to see things get worse before they get better for the Browns in 2016.”
In the offseason, the Browns fired their General Manager Ray Farmer and Head Coach Mike Pettine and promoted general counsel Sashi Brown to Executive VP of Football Operations and brought in Bengals offensive coordinator Hue Jackson.
While the signing of Robert Griffen III certainly brings some life and potential, don’t expect the Browns to be that much improved from 2015. If history has shown us anything, it’s that someway, somehow things won’t go according to plan in Cleveland. Don’t be surprised to see winding up with the number one overall pick next spring.
San Francisco 49ers
Gone is Head Coach Jim Harbaugh, who had a 44-19 record with the team. Gone is longtime runner Frank Gore, who was the 49ers all-time leading career rusher. Gone is the unstoppable quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who had defenses scratching their heads wondering what just happened and gone is San Francisco’s chance to return to the playoffs (for a while at least).
Last season, the Niners finished last in the NFC West with a 5-11 record. Kaepernick was not the same quarterback that we were accustomed to seeing, and Blaine Gabbert took the helm in the huddle.
Now with Chip Kelly, who was fired from the Eagles, coming in, the 49ers have some work to do. They tried to address their defensive issues by taking DeForest Buckner in the first round but didn’t so much to help themselves in free agency. They did lose a top guard in Alex Boone to the Vikings in free agency.
David Fucillo of NinerNation.com explains the many possibilities of why the 49ers really didn’t do much in the 2016 offseason.
“Players might have simply had no interest in the team, and any rumors were agents using the 49ers to drive up the price,” Fucillo says. “It is also possible Trent Baalke was not overly wowed by this year’s free agency class, and thinks there are bottom options later. The team might decide to use this offseason to build through the draft and complement it later.”
The team is beginning the rebuilding process, but like anything good, it takes time. With another top pick, the team can continue quietly rebuilding their depleted roster come into contention in a few years.
[Photo by Getty Images]
