Cleveland Browns Draft Picks 2025: Will They Add a QB to Challenge Deshaun Watson and Kenny Pickett?

The Cleveland Browns are in the midst of a major rebuilding effort, and they need all the resources they can get in the 2025 NFL Draft. Let’s examine the capital that the Browns have in the current 2025 NFL Draft order.

What Are the Cleveland Browns’ Draft Picks in 2025?

How Many Picks Do the Browns Have in the 2025 NFL Draft?

The Cleveland Browns are currently set to have 10 picks in the 2025 NFL Draft. They have their own selections in Rounds 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6. Cleveland acquired four picks via trade and has a further two picks as compensatory selections.

The Browns acquired the Buffalo Bills’ third-round pick in the deal that sent WR Amari Cooper and a sixth-round pick the other way. Cleveland has acquired the Detroit Lions’ fifth-round pick in return for Za’Darius Smith and a seventh-round pick last year. They also sent a fifth-round pick to the Eagles in exchange for QB Kenny Pickett.

The two sixth-round picks that the Browns have added via trade came from the Minnesota Vikings in the Za’Darius Smith trade, in which the Browns sent their own fifth-round pick to Minnesota, and the Miami Dolphins via the Chicago Bears in the Chris Williams trade, in which the Browns sent their own seventh-round pick to the Bears.

There are then two compensatory selections, one in the sixth and one in the seventh round.

What Are the Browns’ Biggest Needs in 2025?

• QB, WR, OT, RB, DT

There is no real way of hiding that the Cleveland Browns’ situation is looking pretty bleak. They had the 32nd-ranked offense last year, their embattled quarterback re-tore his Achilles, and they are in a nightmare of a cap situation.

With Myles Garrett sticking around after his massive extension, the Browns should be able to return a fairly good defense, having ranked ninth last year (thanks to the highest pressure rate in the NFL). They have some depth additions required at all three levels, but that side of the ball looks to be in a pretty good spot.

Unfortunately, we cannot say the same about the offense. Irrespective of whether Deshaun Watson ever plays again, the Browns’ biggest need is at the quarterback position. Watson was a shell of himself before his injuries, and neither Kenny Pickett nor Joe Flacco is a long-term answer. The Browns appear unlikely to draft Shedeur Sanders second overall, which could leave them with a Day 2 option in a weak QB class or in a staredown with the Falcons over Kirk Cousins.

With the arrival of OT Cornelius Lucas, wide receiver has overtaken offensive tackle as the Browns’ second-biggest need. Cedric Tillman and Jamari Thrash flashed potential, but neither is an ideal WR2 behind Jerry Jeudy. They do still need to look at a tackle in the first three rounds, as both Lucas and right tackle Jack Conklin are likely to only be one or two-year solutions at those positions.

With their mid-round picks in the draft, the Browns also need to look to add skill position players. Nick Chubb remains unsigned, and neither Jerome Ford nor Pierre Strong Jr. appears to be the long-term solution at running back.