NFL Draft: Baker Mayfield goes to Cleveland Browns as number one overall pick
It is the second consecutive season the Browns have had the top pick in the draft
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Your support makes all the difference.Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield was chosen as the number one overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns.
The Browns owned the top selection for the second successive campaign, having been just the second team in NFL history to go 0-16 last season.
Unlike in previous seasons, the identity of who would be the top pick had been kept under wraps and the Browns opted for Mayfield, who won the 2017 Heisman Trophy for being the best player in college football, and was the first of four quarterbacks taken in the top 10.
Mayfield did not attend the draft, staged at Dallas Cowboys’ AT&T Stadium, but wrote on Instagram: “CLEVELAND!! Let’s do this!! Excited to be apart of the clevelandbrowns! @neweracap #neweracap #MMO”.
The New York Giants selected Penn State’s running back Saquon Barkley with the second selection, while the New York Jets, who had traded up to number three last month, took USC quarterback Sam Darnold.
Cleveland picked again at four and chose cornerback Denzel Ward, the first defensive player to come off the board, defensive end Bradley Chubb followed to the Denver Broncos and the Indianapolis Colts claimed offensive guard Quenton Nelson.
The Buffalo Bills executed the first trade of the night with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when they jumped up to seven to land Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen.
After linebacker Roquan Smith and offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey had been drafted by the Chicago Bears and the San Francisco 49ers respectively, the Arizona Cardinals also traded up to take UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen and round out the top 10.
With the 32nd and final pick of the day a fifth quarterback was selected – the most snapped up in the opening round since 1999 – as the Baltimore Ravens traded up to take 2016 Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson.
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