N.C. State pass rusher Bradley Chubb has occasionally been mocked into the bottom half of the top ten, giving some San Francisco 49ers fans a bit of hope for help off the edge. If Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson has any say on it, that won’t happen. John Dorsey is in charge of Browns personnel, but Jackson told Mary Kay Cabot at this week’s owners’ meeting that he would love to pair Chubb with last year’s No. 1 pick, Myles Garrett.
“I do at nighttime when I’m by myself,’’ Jackson said Tuesday at the NFL Annual Meeting coaches breakfast. “You kind of play that scenario game with all these different guys. I wish I could have them all. There will be good scenarios as we come down to the end here.’’
The Browns hold the No. 1 and No. 4 picks in the 2018 NFL Draft, which guarantees them some serious talent. Jackson said the Browns will take a quarterback at No. 1. The New York Giants are a good bet to take a QB at No. 2, while the New York Jets seem like a lock to take a QB at No. 3. The Giants could surprise us by taking Chubb or Penn State running back Saquon Barkley, but even if they do, the Browns are assured of the No. 2 non-QB on their draft board.
Jackson lost some measure of say when the team hired John Dorsey to serve as general manager, but he’s not exactly giving away huge secrets with his comments. And given that the Browns hold the No. 1 pick, there are no concerns about somebody leaping over them. This could even provide that much more leverage if someone decides they really want to give up a Godfather offer in picks for the No. 1 or No. 4 picks.
I was not getting my hopes up that Chubb would last to No. 9, or even to a point where the 49ers might be willing to move up. There is enough non-QB talent that will be pushed down to put the 49ers in a position where they shouldn’t need to sacrifice assets for the talent they want.