The Cleveland Browns braintrust headed into the 2014 NFL Draft in a solid position to improve a roster that had won just 27 games over the previous six seasons.
The bungling front office of Joe Banner and Michael Lombardi were out, replaced by general manager Ray Farmer. The team also had a new head coach in Mike Pettine, who hoped to build a foundation of accountability and competitiveness after the revolving door of Rob Chudzinski, Pat Shurmur, and Eric Mangini in the head coach’s office.
Related: NFL Draft factors unknown to the public that impact prospects’ stock
The stage was set for Farmer to have a franchise-altering draft with two selections in the first round - No.