Browns 2024 NFL Draft grades and superlatives

Tyler Greenawalt

Browns 2024 NFL Draft grades and superlatives image

The Browns didn't make a pick until the No. 54 selection, but that doesn't mean Cleveland didn't add any playmakers to the roster.

The team mostly took defensive players after the Browns drafted two defensive linemen, one linebacker and one defensive back compared with one offensive lineman and one wide receiver.

Here are the full draft grades and an overall grade as well as favorite and least-favorite picks.

2024 NFL DRAFT: Full list of picks | Winners & losers

2024 Browns’ Draft class grades and superlatives

Picks and player grades

Overall Grade: B

Best Pick — DT Michael Hall

If the Browns deploy Hall correctly, they could have a great long-term starter on their hands. Hall played a bit out of position at Ohio State, which lean to some drop in production, but his tape is solid for a smaller defensive tackle.

Cleveland needed interior defensive line help and Hall gives the Browns much-needed depth alongside starters Dalvin Tomlinson and Shelby Harris.

Best Value — LB Nathaniel Watson

Watson isn't a do-it-all linebacker, but the Browns don't need him to be in 2024. While Cleveland has a solid stable of linebackers, Watson should provide great support as a situational player in the box who can make tackles at, around or behind the line of scrimmage.

SN's NFL DRAFT HQ: Live tracker | Pick-by-pick grades | Top 250 big board

Least favorite — DT Jowon Briggs

It's hard to call one of the latest picks in the draft a "least favorite," but Briggs might not even crack the 53-man roster when all is said and done. There were other positions of need the Browns could have taken a flier on this late in the draft rather than a defensive tackle who is just more stout than Hall. 

Wildcard — OG Zak Zinter

Zinter could have been a top-picked offensive lineman had he not suffered a season-ending injury this past season. Instead, the Browns get an interior lineman who will get more time to recover and learn from some of the best in the NFL in Cleveland. Zinter is a long-term play by the Browns and one who could take over in 2025.

Tyler Greenawalt

Tyler Greenawalt Photo

 

Tyler Greenawalt is a contributing writer for The Sporting News after stops at Yahoo Sports, USA Today Sports and Turner Sports. He’s worked in written, video, social media and augmented reality content since he graduated from Syracuse University in 2014. His favorite teams – the New York Jets, Orlando Magic and Tottenham Hotspur – always find new and exciting ways to disappoint him, and he consistently questions his fandom. You can follow his bad sports takes at @TyGreen14 on X.