Browns 1st Rd Futility

After the Browns traded Braylon Edwards last month, he joined an infamous list of Cleveland Browns first round failures since their reincarnation in 1999. Here’s the company he joins:

· 1999 – #1 overall pick - Tim Couch, no longer on the team, out of football
· 2000 – #1 - Courtney Brown, no longer on the team, out of football
· 2001 – #3 - Gerard Warren, no longer on the team
· 2002 – #16 - Willie Green, arrested for drunk driving and marijuana possession in 03, no longer on the team, out of football
· 2003 – #21 - Jeff Faine, traded
· 2004 – #6 - Kellen Winslow II, self-proclaimed soldier, tore his ACL popping wheelies on a motorcycle, traded
· 2005 – #3 -Braylon Edwards, led league in drops last season, got into a fight outside a night club, traded
· 2006 - #13 -Kamerion Wimbley, still on the team, but rumored to be traded
· 2007 – #3 - Joe Thomas, still on the team
· 2007 – #22 -Brady Quinn, still on the team, but rumored to be traded
· 2009 – #21 - Alex Mack, still on the team

That’s only four remaining players on the team out of the eleven drafted. I began to think how bad could this 36% retention rate actually be as compared to the rest of the NFL during this time frame? The Lions drafted several bust receivers in a row, Cincinnati and Oakland have been laughing stocks for a while, but how is their draft success percentage compare to the Browns? Well, as it turns out, you guessed it, Cleveland is dead last. Here is the chart below:

Where does your team rank? (if you click on it, its more readable)

Some of the methodology and notes:
· San Diego has the highest success rate at an astounding 90%, and the most remaining players at nine.
· Washington and Chicago also have only four remaining players, but had one less draft pick than the Browns.
· Miami has only drafted seven players, but six are still on the team.
· Detroit, San Francisco, and New York Jets had the most picks at 14.
· Houston still counts since they have had nine picks, which is about average.
· The asterisks:
o Jevon Kearse left Tennessee and came back, so I included him.
o I did not count Larry Johnson.
o I did not count Chris Samuels or Sean Taylor.
· The NFC South has the best percentage at 67%, while the NFC West is worst at 44%.
· I could weight the picks, since the Colts and Pats picks during this time frame weren’t in the top three overall five times, like the Browns, but that’s for a different day.
· I’m sure there’s some correlation I could do between standings and these rankings, but also for another day.