For fans who want the Browns to forsake a quarterback with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft and instead select running back Saquon Barkley on April 26, Penn State coach James Franklin is your champion.
Although the Browns are expected to take a QB in the top spot, Franklin hasn't been shy about making the case against it. In a recent phone interview with the Beacon Journal/Ohio.com, Franklin continued the campaign he launched weeks ago for Barkley to become the first choice.
"If there was a no-brainer quarterback out there or a couple of them that were just head and shoulders above everybody else and didn't have question marks, then you take the quarterback every time," Franklin said. "From the stuff I've seen and heard, that's not really the case.
"There are knocks on all those (quarterbacks) whether it's decision-making, completion percentage, whether it's touchdown-to-interception ratio, whether it's body type, whether it's leadership, whether it's character.
"In the NFL, in college football and then really kind of in business in general, what everybody's trying to do is you're trying to reduce risk, and that's what you get with Saquon."
Like Franklin, many analysts believe Barkley is the best player in the draft. He compiled 671 carries for 3,843 yards (5.7 average) and 43 touchdowns to go along with 102 catches for 1,195 yards and eight TDs, plus two kickoff returns for scores, in three years with the Nittany Lions. He was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year the past two seasons and a consensus All-American last year as a junior.
Barkley, 6-foot and 233 pounds, also lit up the NFL scouting combine last month by posting an official time of 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash, bench pressing 225 pounds 29 times and recording a height of 41 inches in the vertical jump.
What's fascinating about the buzz Barkley's combine numbers created is they weren't even good by his standards.
"I actually think he had a very average combine," Franklin said. "I know he's done 34 reps of 225 (pounds) multiple times. I would not have been surprised if would have run in the 4.2s at the combine, and I say that because our combine numbers are almost identical year in and year out at what we've tested guys at. What we tell the scouts our guys run, they run at the combine, and he's run 4.3 here forever. So he actually had a fairly average combine."
Still, the hype machine kicked into gear. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on March 4 that Barkley was "firmly in the mix" for the Browns at No. 1 overall.
Of course, any NFL organization atop the draft board must debate between picking its favorite quarterback or the best non-QB in the class. It happened last year when the Browns considered defensive end Myles Garrett and quarterback Mitchell Trubisky before settling on Garrett. This time around, a quarterback in the first spot is a virtual lock.
But Barkley could be an option when the Browns, barring a trade down, go on the clock again at No. 4 overall. Last month at the NFL owners meetings, Browns coach Hue Jackson said Barkley is worthy of a top-five pick.
If he gets past the New York Giants at No. 2 _ the New York Jets are expected to take a QB at No. 3 _ his main competition at No. 4 would be NC State defensive end Bradley Chubb, Alabama defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick and Ohio State cornerback Denzel Ward. Of those four, only Ward has visited Browns headquarters during the pre-draft process. He attended the team's local pro day Monday.
"I don't care if I'm drafted one, five or 72 or the last pick," Barkley said at the combine. "I'm going to come in with my head low ready to work. That's not going to change me. No matter where I'm drafted or who I'm drafted by, they're going to get the same person. They're going to get the guy who's going to be a competitor, who's passionate about the game. Even though I'll be a rookie, I'm going to try to be a leader to the best of my ability and continue to work."
