The Cleveland Browns secured the No. 1 pick in the 2017 NFL Draft by finishing a 1-15 season with a 27-24 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 17.
While the Browns have been to the postseason just two times in the last 27 seasons, the No. 1 pick has belonged to Cleveland just three times before in franchise history. The last time the Browns used the first pick was in the 2000 NFL Draft when the team took defensive end Courtney Brown one year after selecting Tim Couch first overall in the 1999 NFL Draft.
With the win Sunday, there was no possibility the San Francisco 49ers could jump the Browns for the top pick, and the 49ers finished with the No. 2 selection after a loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
The early favorite to be the first pick is Texas A&M pass rusher Myles Garrett who had 32.5 sacks in three seasons with the Aggies and announced Saturday he will forgo his senior season to enter the 2017 NFL Draft. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Browns have an “astronomical grade” on Garrett and are “enamored” with the prospect.
Of course, trading the selection is also an option for the Browns. Trades involving the top pick are rare — it has happened just five times in the history of the NFL Draft — but the Tennessee Titans managed to get a significant haul for the top pick in 2015 when the Los Angeles Rams moved up to the No. 1 spot to eventually take Jared Goff.
The Browns may be less inclined to move down in the order, thanks to another first-round selection from the Philadelphia Eagles. Cleveland received Philadelphia’s 2017 first-round pick during a trade prior to the 2016 NFL Draft, and it eventually became a relatively valuable selection when the Eagles had a five-game losing streak in the latter half of the 2016 season.
Philadelphia finished the year with a win over the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17, ending the year with a 7-9 record and securing another pick in the top half of the first round for the Browns.
The Eagles do own the Minnesota Vikings’ first-round pick, though. Minnesota’s opponents finished the season with a combined 125-129-2 record, which is equal to the 126-130 record of Indianapolis Colts’ opponents, so the two teams will flip a coin for rights to the No. 14 pick.
The full order for the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft won’t be determined until after the Super Bowl, but the top 20 selections are set:
# | Team | Rec. | Rec. % | SoS % |
1 | Cleveland Browns | 1-15 | 0.063 | 0.549 |
2 | San Francisco 49ers | 2-14 | 0.125 | 0.504 |
3 | Chicago Bears | 3-13 | 0.188 | 0.521 |
4 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 3-13 | 0.188 | 0.527 |
5 | Los Angeles Rams (pick belong to Titans) | 4-12 | 0.250 | 0.504 |
6 | New York Jets | 5-11 | 0.313 | 0.518 |
7 | San Diego Chargers | 5-11 | 0.313 | 0.543 |
8 | Carolina Panthers | 6-10 | 0.375 | 0.518 |
9 | Cincinnati Bengals | 6-9-1 | 0.406 | 0.521 |
10 | Buffalo Bills | 7-9 | 0.438 | 0.482 |
11 | New Orleans Saints | 7-9 | 0.438 | 0.523 |
12 | Philadelphia Eagles (pick belong to Browns) | 7-9 | 0.438 | 0.559 |
13 | Arizona Cardinals | 7-8-1 | 0.469 | 0.463 |
T-14 | Minnesota Vikings (pick belongs to Eagles) | 8-8 | 0.500 | 0.492 |
T-14 | Indianapolis Colts | 8-8 | 0.500 | 0.492 |
16 | Baltimore Ravens | 8-8 | 0.500 | 0.498 |
17 | Washington | 8-7-1 | 0.531 | 0.516 |
18 | Tennessee Titans | 9-7 | 0.563 | 0.465 |
19 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 9-7 | 0.563 | 0.492 |
20 | Denver Broncos | 9-7 | 0.563 | 0.549 |