And with the first pick of the 2017 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns picked …
… Myles Garrett, defensive end from Texas A&M.
In the hours running up to the decision, rabid draft analysts had been torn between believing that the Browns were going to take Garrett or Mitchell Trubisky, the quarterback from the University of North Carolina.
Welcome to Cleveland, Myles Garrett!https://t.co/xijtGu0Wk2#BrownsDraft pic.twitter.com/Jsa1qKTbEe
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) April 28, 2017
The lackluster Chicago Bears then traded picks with the San Francisco 49ers to nab Trubisky.
Unpopular NFL commissioner Roger Goodell got a chilly reception from the get-go as he took to the stage in front of the “Rocky” steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Thursday night, as the crowd of thousands booed him. (And that wasn’t just New England Patriots fans!)
Hopefully Garrett will have better luck in Cleveland than his predecessors who were selected by the Bad Luck Browns with the team’s first pick in recent years.
Those include Johnny Manziel (also picked from Texas A&M in 2015, who is already out of the league following his high profile partying and poor performance); Tim Couch (1999, but he got lumbered trying to lead an expansion team); Courtney Brown (2000, and injury-prone); William Green (domestic violence and substance abuse issues); Trent Richardson (2012, and subsequently one of the worst running backs in NFL history to get a significant number of carries); and Brady Quinn (2007, nice guy but terrible NFL career).
The Browns had only one win in the 2016 season, which was to the San Diego Chargers in Week 16.
Garrett, a former Texas A&M star, left the Aggies with 31 career sacks and 141 tackles. In his final season, he had 15 tackles for a loss and 8.5 sacks while playing through an ankle injury, according to ESPN.
Originally from Arlington, Texas, the 21-year-old is 6-foot-4 and 272 pounds, and he ran a 4.64-second 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine.
The Cleveland Browns’ search for the next NFL great was immortalized in the 2014 movie “Draft Day” starring Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner and Denis Leary. The sports drama, which was set on the day of a fictional draft, featured real-life NFL analysts Chris Berman, Jon Gruden and Mel Kiper Jr.
Last year, the L.A. Rams chose Jared Goff, a quarterback from Cal, with as the No. 1 pick.
However, he had a slow rookie season — completing 112-of-205 passes for 1,089 yards and 5 touchdowns with 7 interceptions — and his coach, Jeff Fisher, was fired by the team on Dec. 12 after a 42-14 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.