Ask Andrea: The AFC North Mailbag

It's a Cleveland Browns-heavy AFC North Mailbag this week, which makes sense—the Browns have by far the most draft-day questions surrounding them of any team in the division.

Three of this week's four questions concern what the Browns' first-round draft strategy might look like, while the fourth question concerns the top-caliber defenses of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens.

That's the million-dollar question for the Browns this week, it seems. Ryan Tannehill held his pro day this week (on the same day as running back Trent Richardson, actually) and the Browns did attend both.

However, most tellingly, head coach Pat Shurmur and general manager Tom Heckert both attended Richardson's while offensive coordinator Brad Childress was sent to College Station, Texas to observe Tannehill.

Based on Tannehill's workout, draft experts have now propelled him into being a top 10 pick and the Browns are forever speculated to be in the market for a quarterback. Folks like Mike Mayock would like to put what they think is one and one together, but those following the team closely enough know that Heckert and team president Mike Holmgren are pretty sold on keeping Colt McCoy as their starter this season.

There's little-to-no chance that the Browns take Tannehill at No. 4 overall (or at No. 6, should they trade down); if he is still somehow is on the board when they pick 22nd overall, perhaps they make the move on him then, but I doubt he would start this year either way.

For the record, I do have the Browns taking a quarterback this year—Brandon Weeden in round three or Wisconsin's Russell Wilson in rounds six or seven. They need depth as well as a player worth developing if McCoy doesn't pan out this year.

But the Browns are McCoy's team this year, as long as he stays healthy. Tannehill isn't their guy and their interest in him is simply due diligence and little else.

I think that age has begun to take its toll to some extent for both the Ravens and Steelers defense, but I don't see that much of a drop off in the performance of either squad this year.

The Ravens defense is a machine that keeps firing on all cylinders regardless of the coordinator in charge, so I don't see the switch from Chuck Pagano (who was only there for one season anyway) to Dean Pees making much of an impact.

The main question mark for the Ravens this offseason is whether they can find a strong replacement for linebacker Jarret Johnson, who they lost to the San Diego Chargers in free agency. They can likely find their starter in the first round—at pick No. 29, they're in a perfect spot to pick up a start-worthy linebacker.

No, Ray Lewis and Ed Reed aren't getting any younger and neither are the Steelers' James Harrison or Troy Polamalu. But both pairs of veterans are surrounded by fast young players who are more than capable of picking up any slack from those four.

Every offense and defense in the league undergoes changes each offseason, but the Ravens and Steelers defenses seem to adapt to change better than most.

A time will come when squads will decline if certain areas aren't addressed via the draft in the next two to three seasons, but for 2012, both should remain pretty much as strong as ever.

Ranking the AFC North defenses this year is hard before knowing what the rosters are really going to look like.

The Ravens need that linebacker, the Steelers have yet to name a starter to take over William Gay's spot at cornerback, and both the Browns and Bengals will be making additions to their defenses in the draft.

I'd say it's the same as always right now, with the Ravens and Steelers practically tied at the top and the Browns having an edge over the Bengals.

Someone's been doing their homework. Apparently Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is looking for a partner to trade down with in order to take Wisconsin guard/center Peter Konz at a reasonable price. The Browns would be an excellent partner in this trade if they have Notre Dame receiver Michael Floyd in their crosshairs.

Of course, this scenario relies on the Browns taking Trent Richardson fourth overall and not taking Justin Blackmon with this (or, if they trade down, the No. 6) pick. I've long thought that Floyd is a better fit for the Browns than Blackmon, but he's almost certain to be off the board when the Browns select at No. 22.

It's not as though the Browns would be out of receiving options if they didn't trade up with Dallas for the No. 14 pick; in fact, the Browns could easily meet their major right tackle need at No. 22 and then go receiver at No. 37 in the second round and land Mohamed Sanu or even Alshon Jeffery.

But if Floyd is high on the Browns' board, they should make a serious inquiry about trading picks with Dallas. That would be the perfect spot for them to land him.

I am fully in the Trent Richardson camp when it comes to the Browns, for the following reasons:

• There's a reason, beyond just the locker room one, that they let Peyton Hillis walk in free agency without offering him a new deal—they love Richardson.
• Without Hillis, clearly, the Browns need a starting running back.
• The Browns also need to add some serious playmakers, and in the running game, there's none better this year (or in recent years, for that matter) than Richardson.
• Richardson's no one-trick pony—he's a strong runner who can make his own opportunities, but he's also got great hands and high-end pass blocking skills.
• Morris Claiborne is no longer in play—the Browns gave Dimitri Patterson starter money and will move him over from nickel, and Joe Haden is excellent. They aren't going to take a corner fourth overall just to play nickel and contribute on special teams.
• The Browns are not going to pick Ryan Tannehill fourth overall (see above).
• I don't think the Browns really are going to trade down to No. 6.
• Yes, first-round feature backs are the de riguer too-risky-to-risk position right now, but Richardson is the rare talent who is worth the pick, hands down.

But, let's entertain the possibility that the Browns don't go with Richardson at No. 4.

Their options include wide receivers Justin Blackmon or Michael Floyd, offensive tackles Mike Adams or Riley Reiff (not likely because it's not a high-impact move, but it is a position of major need) and, on the outside, Morris Claiborne, if the Browns truly do believe he's the best player available and not Richardson (or if they do end up trading down).

That's it for this week's Ask Andrea AFC North Mailbag. Give me a follow on Twitter for the next call for submissions and get your brains working on questions for next week!

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