The Cleveland Browns had pick 44 in the NFL draft, and us fans where in a fever pitch waiting to see who the Browns would take. A wideout? A defensive lineman? The answer was that they traded back into the third round. Most of us couldn't believe it. Who would be left? A hint of doubt started to creep in. We all took a deep breath and remembered one key phrase, "In Andrew Berry we trust". He picked up great players in the third round starting with CB Martin Emerson, followed by DE Alex Wright, and ended night 2 with WR David Bell. 3 players who can develop into great young players.
Let's take a look at the biggest steal in the NFL Draft. The Cleveland Browns new beast, Perrion Winfrey
When day 3 started the Browns had pick 108, the 3rd pick in the 4th round. There was only one person on the board who you could collectively hear every Browns fan yelling in unison to take, and Andrew Berry heard us and that player was Oklahoma DL Perrion Winfrey.
I personally had Winfrey as a 2nd round pick, but first round talent. To see him siting on the board in round 4 baffled me. He was the number one junior college prospect coming out of Iowa Western. He transferred to Oklahoma looking to make his mark, and in 2021 he was an absolute monster.
At 6'4" & 290 lbs, he is a behemoth of a man, with a motor that never stops. He has extremely long arms and violent hands that he uses to push blockers into the backfield or rip through to get to the ball carrier. At Oklahoma last season he had 5.5 sacks, 11 TFL, a FF, but his biggest attribute was that he was so menacing that opposing teams had to put emphasis on him allowing other members of the Sooner defense to make plays.
How was Winfrey still there in round 4? That's anyone's guess. I've scoured his scouting reports and the one thing that is consistent is that there is no consistency among scouts. Some say he is not great with his hands. Others say he is violent with them. some say he can't handle double teams, while others say he gets through them with ease. Whatever the case may be he is a Cleveland Brown now.
Go and look up highlights of Perrion Winfrey. The very first highlights I watched where electric. He is a Mack truck. He never stops. No matter what his scouting reports say, this is one of the most impressive, violent, defensive tackles I have seen in years. Yet he still has control on plays where you think he may be out of it. He keeps his head up while being blocked and locating the ball then attacking. I can't tell you how many snaps I watched him battle an offensive lineman, locate the ball handler and deliver a massive hit, either a tackle for a loss or only giving up maybe a yard when it could have been so much more. In the first highlight I watched the very first comment was "this guy is a beast the Browns should draft him". That comment was posted 2 months before the NFL Draft even took place.
Maybe it was destiny that a monster with all the potential in the world will be paired up with the best DE in the league in Myles Garrett. Winfrey is only going to get stronger, faster, more technically sound.
In his his first post draft interview with Cleveland reporters, he made a statement with his comments. "I'm a Dawg now!" he proclaimed. "I'm lining up next to the best defensive end in the game, Myles Garrett, we gonna take this over!, It's over with!, I'm going to work every single day til I can't work no more. They are going to feel me every single day'."
I believe every word that Winfrey said. He's coming into the NFL with a chip on his massive shoulders and wants to work every day learning from the best to become the best. You can call me biased or say that I play favorites, but deep down this isn't a normal young rookie prospect I'm looking at, it's a future All-Pro.