Browns select Dorian Thompson-Robinson

  The Cleveland Browns possessed two fifth-rounders, both early in the round and so close together that only the Minnesota Vikings selected between the two Cleveland choices.

I always like to see teams take quarterbacks on the third day of the draft, even if they don't always need them.

It creates depth, creates competition, and on occasions even can produce a starter, whether that's for the team that drafts them or for another team in need down the road.

With the first of the two choices, Cleveland took a quarterback in UCLA's Dorian Thompson-Robinson.

Thompson-Robinson holds the UCLA program record for passing yards and touchdowns, has a strong arm, and produced a solid senior year after many thought he would declare for the 2022 draft, throwing for over 3,100 yards, rushing for over 600 yards, throwing twenty-seven touchdowns and running for twelve more.

The only real knock on Thompson-Robinson is his occasional tendency to hurry his throws and move prematurely in the pocket but much of this comes from that he really hasn't played that much football, having served as a backup to former high school phenom Tate Martell.

Thompson-Robinson has a certain raw quality to him, he will need lots of time and work, and more players of his experience don't make it in the league than prove to be successful but I think he'll stick with the Browns for 2023.

Let me tell you what I really like about this pick.

For years, I've complained that so many teams will give their starting quarterback spot to a player and then use a player with an entirely different skill set as his backup and then wonder why the team struggles with the backup performing with a team that has been built around what the starter can do.

I've never thought that makes a lot of sense and whether you like Dorian Thompson-Robinson as a prospect or not or if you think Joshua Dobbs is a true NFL quality backup quarterback or not, give the Browns credit for placing quarterbacks in their room that have many of the same qualities and attributes, which should give the team a better chance to succeed in the event of an injury to the starter.

That's only smart thinking and it's good to see for the hype over the Browns, who all too often think they are the smartest people in the room, and "analytics" that Cleveland's thinking on this is correct.