NFL Draft Picks 2014: Recapping the Major Storylines After Round 1 Results

As sensational as the buildup was for the 2014 NFL draft, it more than lived up to the bill.

Several teams shifted around the board; others made shocking selections—the Cleveland Browns did both.

The first round always comes with plenty of surprises. Whether it was Johnny Manziel falling out of the top 10 or Blake Bortles going to the Jacksonville Jaguars at No. 3 overall, the excitement continued in the 2014 draft.

With the opening round finally coming to a close, here's a look at the biggest storylines emerging after Thursday night.

Pick	Team	Player	Position	School
1.	Texans	Jadeveon Clowney	DE/OLB	South Carolina
2.	Rams (from WSH)	Greg Robinson	OT	Auburn
3.	Jaguars	Blake Bortles	QB	UCF
4.	Bills*	Sammy Watkins	WR	Clemson
5.	Raiders	Khalil Mack	OLB	Buffalo
6.	Falcons	Jake Matthews	OT	Texas A&M
7.	Buccaneers	Mike Evans	WR	Texas A&M
8.	Browns*	Justin Gilbert	CB	Oklahoma State
9.	Vikings*	Anthony Barr	OLB	UCLA
10.	Lions	Eric Ebron	TE	North Carolina
11.	Titans	Taylor Lewan	OT	Michigan
12.	Giants	Odell Beckham Jr.	WR	LSU
13.	Rams	Aaron Donald	DT	Pittsburgh
14.	Bears	Kyle Fuller	CB	Virginia Tech
15.	Steelers	Ryan Shazier	OLB	Ohio State
16.	Cowboys	Zack Martin	OG/OT	Notre Dame
17.	Ravens	C.J. Mosley	ILB	Alabama
18.	Jets	Calvin Pryor	FS	Louisville
19.	Dolphins	Ja'Wuan James	OT	Tennessee
20.	Saints*	Brandin Cooks	WR	Oregon State
21.	Packers	Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix	FS	Alabama
22.	Browns*	Johnny Manziel	QB	Texas A&M
23.	Chiefs	Dee Ford	DE/OLB	Auburn
24.	Bengals	Darqueze Dennard	CB	Michigan State
25.	Chargers	Jason Verrett	CB	TCU
26.	Eagles* (from IND)	Marcus Smith	DE/OLB	Louisville
27.	Cardinals*	Deone Bucannon	SS	Washington State
28.	Panthers	Kelvin Benjamin	WR	Florida State
29.	Patriots	Dominique Easley	DT	Florida
30.	49ers	Jimmie Ward	SS	Northern Illinois
31.	Broncos	Bradley Roby	CB	Ohio State
32.	Vikings*	Teddy Bridgewater	QB	Louisville

Manziel Slides To Bottom of First Round

In a draft class where the top-tier quarterbacks were all slated to go in the first five picks, just one heard his name called.

Surprisingly, that player was not Johnny Manziel. The Texas A&M quarterback fell out of the top 20, but landed with a team that needed a signal-caller, the Cleveland Browns.

As Jeff Darlington of NFL.com points out, his offensive coordinator makes a perfect fit as well:

Kyle Shanahan was recently the coordinator with Robert Griffin III. Though the pairing didn't work out as well during Year 2, Shanahan has a system that's built for a signal-caller like Manziel.

Though the Browns haven't been a successful franchise in years, Manziel believes he will buck that trend, per USA Today:

Now that Johnny Cleveland is ready to take over the throne, the hope is that he can find more success than the previous first-round picks for the team.

Browns Win the First Round

Let's be honest, the Browns never make the right decisions. And early in the first round, this year appeared to be business as usual.

After moving back to the No. 9 pick, the Browns then traded up to No. 8 to select Justin Gilbert. That selection didn't look like the trendy one at the time, but another crucial trade later in the draft led to getting Mr. Football at 22nd overall.

Surprisingly enough, that is a familiar pick for quarterbacks in Cleveland, per ESPN Stats and Info:

The hope for Browns fans is that Manziel doesn't wind up like the other signal-callers.

Manziel will be the player making headlines for Cleveland, but Gilbert is a huge one as well. Selecting Gilbert gives Cleveland two lockdown corners with Joe Haden on one side of the defense already.

Texans Have Their Cake and Eat It, Too

Selecting Jadeveon Clowney was the only guaranteed pick of the night, and the Houston Texans made it.

Apart from that, Houston's night was pretty much over. But Day 2 brings prosperity as well for the team, which holds the keys to the first overall selection in the second round.

After Manziel and Teddy Bridgewater were taken off the board, the pressure is now on for teams to grab potential franchise quarterbacks. Therefore, the Texans can either trade the pick or grab a signal-caller of their own.

Much like in the first round, the Texans have time to figure out exactly what they want to do. With names like A.J. McCarron, Jimmy Garoppolo and Zach Mettenberger still available, Houston is once again on the clock.

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