Since about February 1st, most have believed that they have figured out what the Cleveland Browns will do in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft. In some order, the Browns are expected to draft a wide receiver, draft an offensive tackle, and/or trade down (potentially multiple times). Rumors have been all over the place, but they have generally revolved around those options.

During the NFL combine, there was some discussion about whether Cleveland could make a surprise selection with an Ohio State Buckeyes defender, either edge Arvell Reese or safety Caleb Downs. With just days to go until the draft, Reese seems unlikely to be available and Downs seems likely to slide a few more spots after the sixth overall pick.

According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Browns are ‘very open to a surprise’ in the first round, and assuming they’ll select WR/OT in some order isn’t prudent:

"I was told by a source with the team that it would be shortsighted to assume that they're just going to fulfill two needs with their two first round picks and just go from there. They're very open to a surprise here," – @JFowlerESPN on the Browns 👀👀👀 pic.twitter.com/b9k4BuUWS1

At this point, no one really knows, and there are probably lots of reasons why any real information will be shared just days away from the draft. For now, if Browns fans are putting all of their eggs in the basket of early selections being at wide receiver and offensive tackle, Fowler is trying to pump the brakes a bit and change your expectations.

What do you believe about what the Browns plans are for this year’s draft?