The NFL Draft is only about a week away and at this point even though they won't announce it publicly the Browns have to know what they are doing with the number one overall pick. Many pundits are saying that the number one pick will come down to either Sam Darnold or Josh Allen. Recently someone with ties inside the organization decided to speak their mind on what the Browns will do with the number one pick.
Kurt Warner said that he expects the Browns to select Josh Allen with the number one overall pick. This is significant because Warner knows the Browns' offensive coordinator Todd Haley very well.
When the Arizona Cardinals went on their Super Bowl run Warner was the Quarterback and Haley was the offensive coordinator. This means that they had to have a very close working relationship and they are not reported to have bad blood. So it is conceivable that they still talk, which adds weight to Warner's words vs. those of anonymous sources. It is worth noting that Warner said that he would take Darnold over Allen.
Josh Allen positives
Josh Allen is a prospect that a lot of the Cleveland fanbase will not like given their history with quarterbacks. He is a high ceiling low floor player with a big chance to be a bust. Given Cleveland's history with drafting quarterbacks, fans are not going to like this.
However, If you're an optimist the positives on Allen are that his physical measurables are off the charts. He is 6'5, 230 pounds, with a cannon for an arm and decent mobility (4.75 40). The strength of his arm cannot be overstated, as he is able to make throws that no other quarterback will be able to make. He is able to throw the ball further than anyone in the class and is able to fit the ball into the tiniest of windows.
He is strong enough to get away from sacks and when he manages to avoid the pressure while staying on his feet he can make plays that make you go wow. From a physical tool standpoint, he is everything you want in an NFL quarterback.
Josh Allen negatives
If you're a pessimist, however, the biggest negative is that Allen is bad at just about everything else that makes a quarterback good.
He is extremely inaccurate and has never completed more than 56 percent of his passes. He doesn't make good pre-snap reads and often gets caught looking confused by opposing defenses. He doesn't anticipate throws well, often mistiming where his receiver will be on a route and he struggles to take heat off of the football on short routes. He will often gun a ball into a receiver at full speed when he needs to put a little touch on the ball to help his receiver out some. He also has a tendency to play hero ball and try to make throws he really shouldn't, which will lead to a lot of turnovers in the NFL.
Also, many have said that NFL front offices believe that Allen just hasn't had the level of coaching required to develop a talent like him and that when he gets around NFL coaches he will start to realize his full potential.
But I'm not so sure that is true. While Allen was at Wyoming he was coached by the same coach that developed Carson Wentz at South Dakota State. More concerning is the fact that Allen was much worse at the JUCO level than he was at Wyoming. During his one year of play at Reedley, Allen only had a 49% completion rate against a much lower level of competition than he'll be facing in the NFL.
He has clearly taken big strides under his current coaching staff but at some point, you have to ask how much you really expect a guy to develop. He started his career as someone that couldn't hit the ocean from the beach and has stepped up to someone who can't hit the broad side of a barn from 30 feet. Is this a guy we really expect to eventually be accurate enough to be a good NFL QB? The thing that scares me the most about Allen is that he very well may have already reached the ceiling of his potential.
