NFL Draft Rumors: Will Rams trick Browns into trading for No. 1 pick?
By Josh Hill
The Los Angeles Rams are totally going to fleece the Cleveland Browns for that No. 1 pick.
When the St. Louis Rams made a trade for the No. 1 pick this week, it floored just about everyone who had been trying to pay attention to the draft. A team simply doesn’t move up from 15th overall to the top slot on a whim, and Los Angeles paid dearly to move up 14 spots.
But if you’re a Rams fan having some mild regret over flipping so many picks to Tennessee in exchange for either Jared Goff or Carson Wentz, then just relax and consider reality for a second.
Yes, the Rams gave up a pretty penny to move up to the No. 1 spot but the Cleveland Browns are sitting right behind them and seem to be as anxious as ever by this big trade. Already there was anxiety about how badly the Browns would screw up this top pick but at least we know. If there’s one thing that Jeff Fisher is super smug about, it’s being smarter at fleecing you than anyone in the NFL — which means he’s setting up a fleecing of the Browns.
These are the good ol’ Browns we’re taking about which means they’ll find a way to trade their next two draft classes for Tim Couch.
There’s no way in hell that Fisher makes this trade without knowing how badly the Browns want either Goff or Wentz. Unlike the Cleveland, the Rams are probably content taking either of those top two quarterbacks, which means if they trade back to No. 2 it doesn’t matter who they end up with. Cleveland, on the other hand, desperately needs to hit this out of the park and into the flammable Cleveland river which means they’re going to go full Draft Day and trade to No. 1.
It’s the only way this scenario can possibly go down. Everyone is looking at Fisher with raised eyebrows over not learning his lesson following the infamous RGIII fleecing but we’re overlooking the fact that Cleveland is sitting right there just begging for L.A. to take all of their picks so they can get the quarterback they want.
Of course, the smart thing for Cleveland to do would be to use this momentum created by the Rams trade and move down themselves with a team like Philadelphia, San Francisco or New York who want one of those two top quarterbacks. But these are the good ol’ Browns we’re taking about which means they’ll find a way to trade their next two draft classes for Tim Couch.
It’s simple math. The Rams have the first pick and the Browns want a quarterback. The Browns are stupid, therefore the will trade up to get the guy they want while St. Louis does the same plus recoups picks they gave to Tennessee.
In all seriousness, the Rams may very well stick with the No. 1 pick and take Goff or Wentz. But don’t count out Los Angeles hyping the hell out of the guy Cleveland wants and then recouping some picks by allowing the Browns to move up one spot. It’s not the first time a team has pump-faked the Browns into trading one spot and God knows it won’t be the last.
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