NFL Draft Speculation

This time of year is absolutely crazy with speculation and rumor about who teams are going to draft. And 99% of the time the speculation is nothing more than a wrong guess. It's the NFL's own version of March Madness.

For some time, the consensus among NFL draft "experts" (often anyone with a website or blog), was that the Browns were leaning toward drafting RB Adrian Peterson. This compilation of mock drafts, the "Mock Draft Muncher" shows as much. However, this was compiled 2 weeks ago, and a lot has changed in two weeks.

One persistent rumor is that the Oakland Raiders, who own the #1 pick, plan to trade WR Randy Moss (possibly to Green Bay). If this were to happen, Oakland would have a need for WR Calvin Johnson, thought to be the best player in the draft by many. This could possibly drop QB JeMarcus Russell into the Browns lap at #3, assuming Detroit takes OT Joe Thomas, as predicted.

I have also read that some teams think that decent running backs can be found throughout the draft, and that unless a RB projects as the next LaDanian Tomlinson, its not worth the money to take a RB in the top 10 of the draft. Based on this, there has been speculation that the Browns will take Russell or QB Brady Quinn at #3.

Finally, there are numerous rumors about the Lions or Browns trading down, with the possible teams looking to move up including the Vikings (#7), Falcons (#8), or Texans (#10).