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2020 NFL Draft

2020 Draft Analysis: Browns 'trust the board,' fill key spots on both sides of the ball

This would have been a brand new experience for Andrew Berry, Paul DePodesta and Kevin Stefanski under completely normal conditions.

The curveball thrown their way, in the form of a completely virtual NFL Draft that anchored every important figure to a computer in their own house, simply added a few more wrinkles to an annual experience that requires fine-tuned collaboration between the coaching staff and player personnel department.

Years will need to pass before the Browns' 2020 draft class can be truly evaluated. On Saturday evening, though, head coach Kevin Stefanski was able to appreciate how smoothly the process unfolded as the team added seven players who will help shape the identity they want to carry into 2020 and beyond.

"I really was pleased with how these last three days have gone. This is the culmination of a lot of hard work," Stefanski said. "Those road scouts, wish I could have been with them this weekend, but this is definitely the fruits of their labor. We went armed with a ton of information and that is to their credit. The whole personnel group and the coaching staff, it takes a lot of people to put this thing together. I think armed with all that information, I think we have some guys that we are excited to bring into our building.

"I think we got better on both sides of the ball, and I think we added some guys that we are looking forward to developing."

Cleveland filled its biggest area of need with its most important pick when it selected Alabama OT Jedrick Wills with the 10th overall pick. The Browns followed Friday by attacking the defense -- while making two trades along the way -- that will have new faces at every level of it, adding talented LSU S Grant Delpit, Missouri DT Jordan Elliott and LSU LB Jacob Phillips while making two trades along the way. Saturday saw more of the same methodical approach as the Browns held steady at all three of their picks and let the board fall to them. As a result, they landed productive, pass-catching Florida Atlantic TE Harrison Bryant in the fourth round, an experienced interior offensive lineman in the fifth with Washington's Nick Harris and a high-upside pass-catcher in the sixth with WR Donovan Peoples-Jones.

"We are pleased that we feel like we were able to add a number of young talented players to the roster this weekend who fit our offense and defensive schemes," Berry said. "We feel like we were able to address a number of needs across the roster on both sides of the ball. And then perhaps most importantly we feel good about adding a number of individuals that embody the tough, smart, accountable culture that we are trying to build upon here in Cleveland."

The usual room full of scouts, executives coaches and more that is customary with draft weekend was transformed into blocks of faces on a laptop. Still, the process remained what it's supposed to be, and that's why the Browns felt so good about how they operated over the past three days.

"If you trust the board, you are usually right," Stefanski said. "There is a reason our scouts and coaches work this hard. There is a reason we put this board together and I think to the group's credit, we really stuck to that board."

Here's a full look back our coverage, including links to everything we produced, of the Browns' 2020 NFL Draft class.

The Browns have selected Jedrick Wills Jr. in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Day 1

1st round

No. 10 - OT Jedrick Wills Jr. (Alabama)

The Browns have selected Grant Delpit in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Day 2

2nd round

No. 44 - S Grant Delpit

3rd round

No. 88 - DT Jordan Elliott (Missouri)

The Browns have selected Jacob Phillips in the 2020 NFL Draft.

No. 97 - LB Jacob Phillips (LSU)

Day 3

4th round

No. 115 - TE Harrison Bryant (Florida Atlantic)

The Browns have selected Nick Harris in the 2020 NFL Draft.

5th round

No. 160 - Washington C Nick Harris

The Browns have selected Donovan Peoples-Jones in the 2020 NFL Draft.

6th round

No. 187 - Michigan WR Donovan Peoples-Jones

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