While paying close attention to the 11 Baltimore Ravens' draft picks throughout draft weekend, there's no doubt Flock Nation should have also been paying attention to their AFC North rivals' picks as well. Even though Baltimore is coming off back-to-back AFC North titles, there's nothing guaranteed in this league and it's better to know what's ahead.
Unfortunately, there were some really good picks made by the other teams in the division. After all, the rest of the AFC North is playing catch-up with the Ravens. But for every good pick, there were also some really bad picks.
Obviously, we're looking at Day 1 and 2 selections. Sure, teams can reach for prospects on Day 3 but rounds four through seven aren't necessarily known for being littered with talent. Most of these picks won't pan out in the league. However... when one of your divisional rivals reaches like Inspector Gadget in the first three rounds, it'd be a disservice to not point it out (and celebrate).
The Cleveland Browns blew everyone's minds when they made arguably the most head-scratching draft selection of the weekend.
Ravens fans should celebrate Browns' Dillon Gabriel draft reach
With the 94th pick in the NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns selected Oregon quarterback, Dillon Gabriel. On the surface, the pick made sense. The Browns were presumably looking for their next franchise QB after not really addressing the need in the offseason.
DeShaun Watson re-tore his Achilles and underwent surgery in January 2025, leaving the starting position wide open. Cleveland Cleveland-ed and solved this problem by trading for Kenny Pickett and signing 40-year-old (Ravens legend) Joe Flacco. So yeah... drafting a QB made tons of sense. But Gabriel's selection was a massive head-scratcher.
Gabriel was drafted 84 spots earlier than his projection, as consensus big board had him ranked 178th. Funny enough the 178th pick went to Bilhal Kone who was selected by your Ravens. But we digress. It's clear the Gabriel selection was a reach. Not only because they spent a third-rounder on a consensus sixth, but because of who was left on the board when they selected the former Duck.
Shedeur Sanders, Kyle McCord, and Will Howard were all still available when the Browns made their pick. To make it even worse, they ended up drafting Sanders anyway in the fifth round (No. 144). McCord and Howard, both ranked higher on the consensus big board, lasted until the sixth round. It just begs the question: what were the Browns thinking?
This is textbook organization mispractice. Not only did they reach on a valuable pick, but they then replaced him immediately two rounds later. Sanders is walking into the QB room as the most talented player in it. It's honestly sad, but we'll laugh nonetheless.
The Browns definitely needed to draft a quarterback. But why not draft Sanders instead of Gabriel and then look at adding value later in the draft? Why reach with a premium pick for what seems to be literally no reason? Whatever the reason is—if there is one—it cost them dearly and that's to the immediate benefit of the Ravens. So, thank you, Cleveland.
It's incredibly unlikely Gabriel gets the starting gig this season, if ever. This will be one of those picks Ravens fans can hold over Browns fans for a long time. Good luck selling that one to the Dawg Pound.