Most years, holding the No. 6 overall pick would be a very good thing for the Cleveland Browns. However, in the 2026 NFL Draft, there looks to be only one potential franchise quarterback available, and maybe no potential franchise left tackle, two positions the Browns would desperately like to fill.
With a true top wide receiver also looking to be absent, the Browns are more in a bind with that selection than they might like. However, there is a way to turn it into something special, and that could be by trading down and acquiring more picks.
That strategy worked last year when Cleveland traded down from No. 2 overall and wound up with one of the best rookie classes in years. Now, with several attractive prospects likely to be available at positions the Browns don’t need, they could try to capture that magic again.
Analyst Josh Edwards is projecting a draft-day trade where the Browns send the No. 6 overall pick to the Dallas Cowboys and receive the No. 12 pick plus two second-round choices in return.
“Dallas sends No. 12 overall and second-round picks each of the next two years to the Browns in exchange for No. 6 overall and a 2027 fourth-round pick. Cleveland trades back, picks up additional draft capital and still lands a raw, but extremely talented left tackle. Monroe Freeling was playing his best football at the end of the season, but no one has to tell Browns head coach Todd Monken about his potential; Monken helped recruit him to Athens as Georgia’s offensive coordinator,” Edwards wrote.
Cleveland would also send a fourth-round pick to Dallas in this deal. Then, at No. 12 overall, the Browns would select Freeling, who makes more sense there than he would at No. 6.
The Browns have conducted an efficient rebuild of their offensive line so far this offseason, with the additions of Tytus Howard, Zion Johnson and Elgton Jenkins, and re-signing Teven Jenkins. But there is still a glaring vacancy at left tackle, which right now would be manned by oft-injured Dawand Jones.
Freeling has been rising up boards throughout the pre-draft process, and he does have first-round value, but arguably not in the top 10. So, this proposed deal not only would solve Cleveland’s left tackle problem at a reasonable cost, but it would give them other valuable picks as well.
Remember, both Carson Schwesinger and Quinshon Judkins were second-round picks last year, and each of them went on to have an outstanding rookie season for the Browns, so they hopefully will be foundational players for years to come.
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