The easiest and most obvious moves to criticize for an NFL team are the ones that they do make. But the ones that they don’t make can be even more critical and damaging.
Everyone knows by now how detrimental the Cleveland Browns’ trade for Deshaun Watson has been for the franchise. Yet they may never have been in that position had they chosen a different path in the 2018 NFL Draft.
That year, the Browns used the No. 1 overall pick on quarterback Baker Mayfield. They then used the No. 4 pick on cornerback Denzel Ward. Three picks later, at No. 7 overall, the Buffalo Bills were able to select Josh Allen.
Looking back on that now, following Allen’s latest incredible game for the Bills, analyst Anthony Lima said the Browns made a bigger mistake than Watson by passing on Allen not once but twice, although there’s no guarantee he would have become the player he did with Cleveland.
“Obviously, the Deshaun Watson thing is going up in infamy. It’s always gonna be brought up as the worst thing ever. [But] somebody was like, ‘It’s not the worst. The worst was passing up Josh Allen.’ I know we’ll never know [if Josh Allen would’ve been Josh Allen]. Do you realize in two games Josh Allen has nine touchdowns accounted for? Deshaun Watson, he’s got nine touchdowns in his last nine games total. In two games, he’s got more production,” Lima said.
"The worst was passing up Josh Allen. In two games, Josh Allen has 9 TDs…Deshaun Watson, he's got 9 TDs in his last 9 games. In two games he's got more production."
➡️ @SportsBoyTony and @KenCarman react to the start from #Bills QB Josh Allen, why he's the one that got away… pic.twitter.com/9sq3UXwgbw
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) September 18, 2026
Entering the 2018 draft, Allen was seen as a talented but raw prospect coming out of the University of Wyoming. There were doubts that he would overcome his passing accuracy issues in the pros, and he was not strongly considered the potential No. 1 selection.
That debate was more between Mayfield and Sam Darnold, and the Browns opted for Mayfield, who had just won the Heisman Trophy at the University of Oklahoma. Running back Saquon Barkley was the No. 2 choice to the New York Giants, followed by Darnold, Ward, pass rusher Bradley Chubb to the Denver Broncos at No. 5, and offensive lineman Quenton Nelson to the Indianapolis Colts at No. 6.
So, the Browns weren’t the only team to pass on Allen, although, in theory, Cleveland could have had both Barkley and Allen. In addition, though it took some time for Darnold to emerge, he just won the Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks, a game Allen has never reached with the Bills.
Considering that Watson was the choice to replace Mayfield just four years later, the combination of the two failures is undoubtedly the worst chain of events in recent Browns history.
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