Regardless of what you may see in mock drafts and hear on NFL shows, no one can predict a draft day trade before the draft itself. That doesn’t mean we won’t see any. In fact, we’ll likely see plenty, but there’s not one that any of us can point to right now as a sure thing. If it was, like the New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts swapping picks, it would have already happened.
Still, knowing that every conceivable trade is on the table once the Cleveland Browns are on the clock makes for an interesting draft day. Here are a few first round wagers available for you if you are so inclined.
TOTAL NFL DRAFT ROUND 1 TRADES COMPLETED
Over 7.5 (-115)
Under 7.5 (-115)
WILL ODELL BECKHAM JR. BE INCLUDED IN AN NFL DRAFT DAY TRADE?
Yes (+350)
No (-600)
TOTAL TIMES ODELL BECKHAM JR. IS MENTIONED DURING ROUND 1 OF THE NFL DRAFT
Over 2.5 (-115)
Under 2.5 (-115)
First up, let’s look at the number of Round 1 trades we can expect. Here’s what makes it very interesting. Seven or eight trades in the first round could absolutely happen, but here’s the rub, as Shakespeare once said. Five trades have already gone down and don’t count toward this total. The Colts and Jets swapped picks, like I already mentioned. The Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals also did a switcharoo and the Los Angeles Rams sent their first rounder to the New England Patriots in exchange for wide receiver Brandin Cooks.
When you factor in that we have two holdover trades from last season (the Kansas City Chiefs packaged their 2018 first rounder in a trade with the Bills to draft Patrick Mahomes and the Houston Texans did the same thing with the Cleveland Browns to draft Deshaun Watson), that’s a lot of movement. If you bet the over, then you must see eight trades that could happen on top of the exchanges already in the books.
Do we have any possibilities?
First off, let’s see who has the ammunition to move up. The Browns, Bills and Patriots all have two first rounders. With Cleveland, considering they have the Nos 1 and 4 picks, moving up probably isn’t an option, but moving down certainly could be. That fourth pick is definitely up for sale to the highest bidder and new general manager John Dorsey would love nothing more than to pocket an extra 2019 first round pick and still stay in the Top 10 in this draft.
Obviously, for that to happen, it’s all about the quarterbacks. If the Browns take a QB at one (and they will), then the New York Jets take a QB at three (and they most definitely will), then a team in love with one of the remaining signal callers will have to jump the Denver Broncos at No. 5 in order to land him, likely Josh Rosen or Baker Mayfield. Because if one of those guys falls to five, Denver is definitely pulling the trigger and drafting him.
The Bills are in desperate need of a quarterback of their own. They currently control the Nos 12 and 22 picks in the draft. Could Cleveland be swayed to trade for both those picks? Is Buffalo content to sit at 12 and take whoever falls to them? If they do make that play and teams start jumping them in trades, will they panic and get in the mix?
Still, with all the action that’s happened pre-draft, the under seems the safest bet.
As for the New York Giants and Odell Beckham Jr., those are some very interesting props of their own. The Giants just cut Brandon Marshall so they have a definite need at wideout, even if they don’t move OBJ. I don’t see them taking a QB at No. 2, regardless of what mock drafts are predicting, with Saquon Barkley and Bradley Chubb sitting there. What is possible is that someone, down the line, offers New York the two first round picks (minimum) required to land Beckham in a trade.
I still say no. Pat Shurmur won’t want to trade his best offensive toy away before he gets a chance to play with it. Now, how many times will OBJ be mentioned during Round 1? The over here looks like the way to go. He’ll definitely get mentioned at least once while the Giants are on the clock and probably again later when the Patriots make the pick they got from the Rams in the Brandin Cooks trade. All you need is one more and you’ve got cash.
