CLEVELAND — Several days after the NFL Draft, prognosticators across the nation are giving the Browns high marks.
Pro Football Focus gave Cleveland an "A+" for its seven picks, one of only four teams to receive that grade from the publication. Others lauded the club for its selection of Jedrick Wills Jr., an Alabama product who is expected to start at left tackle, with the 10th overall pick.
But rest assured, new head coach Kevin Stefanski isn't letting himself get lost in the hype, at least not yet.
"Was it a successful draft?" he asked 850 ESPN Cleveland's "The Really Big Show." "Ask me in three years."
Yes, we won't truly know how good these guys are until they actually suit up and play for the Brown and Orange, and hopefully the coronavirus pandemic won't delay the start of their careers this fall. Of course, tempered expectations don't mean Stefanski doesn't like what he sees from the new crop. In fact, the coach says he knew Wills was "the guy" when he saw him perform at the NFL Combine.
"I can remember watching him go through his drills in Indianapolis, and I turned to AB (GM Andrew Berry) and raised my eye brows and said, 'Whoa, did you see those feet?'" he said. "There were moments when you saw unique characteristics from this kid throughout the draft process."
Wills will undoubtedly be under pressure to prevent pressure, as the Browns have a storied history of offensive linemen that includes Hall of Famers Lou Groza, Mike McCormack, and Gene Hickerson. There was even talk that the 21-year-old would don the No. 73 on his uniform, famously worn by former Pro Bowler (and current broadcaster) Doug Dieken and more recently by Canton-bound legend Joe Thomas.
Thomas apparently gave Wills permission to wear the number (which the organization has not officially retired), but Stefanski stepped in and said it was off limits. Instead, the rookie will wear No. 71.
"I just didn't think it was the right thing to do for a bunch of different reasons and I told Jedrick that," Stefanski said. "The good news is I get to assign these numbers and I made sure that he knew which were available."
Stefanski is essentially rookie himself, having been hired to his first head coaching job after just over a season as the Minnesota Vikings' offensive coordinator. He inherits a Browns team picked by many to make the playoffs in 2019, but instead finished a disastrous 6-10 that led to Stefanski's predecessor, Freddie Kitchens, being fired after only a year on the job.
Much of the blame was placed on Kitchens' inability to reach his team, but also on quarterback Baker Mayfield, who regressed in his sophomore campaign. However, Stefanski says he believes in the young signal caller.
"We all mature," he said. "Baker is in his third year. He's a pro now. He’s getting this. I want the best version of Baker Mayfield. I don’t want to make him anything he’s not, just like all of our players."
Stefanski says expectations should remain high for Mayfield, and he's confident the QB can meet them due to his history of winning in high school and college. A big part of Mayfield's success, Stefanski says, will be dependent upon not just the work he and the staff put in, but on the players around him.
"I think we added some pieces to the offensive side of the ball which can only help the development of a young quarterback," Stafanski said. "We’re gonna work our hardest with this kid. We’re gonna keep our thumb on him. It’s just a matter of the players rising to the occasion."
Those pieces include a slew of tight ends, a position Stefanski has a reported fondness for. Cleveland signed former Atlanta Falcons Pro Bowler Austin Hooper to a four-year contract in the offseason, and also picked up the fifth-year 2021 option on former first-round pick David Njoku. In addition, 2019 John Mackey Award winner Harrison Bryant was drafted in the fourth round out of Florida Atlantic.
"I’m excited about what that whole room is capable of," Stefanski said of his tight ends. "We want that to be a position of strength for us and we're not going to turn away and say we have too many of one thing."
Stefanski is the Browns' ninth full-time head coach since the club returned to the NFL in 1999, and none of those men have made it through a third season since Romeo Crennel. It was Crennel who led the team to its last winning record in 2007, and as of 2020 it has now been 26 years since the team's last playoff victory (under Bill Belichick).