***Speculation from Brownsboard.com***

[Zerovoltz]

Came accross this.....I am not saying one way or another what I think of this....it is one of those "I know a guy who knows a guy" type of things.  The guy seems to have at least a shred of credibility as his posts last year on this football forum where he posted prior to the draft seemed to have came to be.  Again....I am posting this for your reading enjoyment...not as fact, not as an endorsement of my opinion....in fact, this runs counter to what I still continue to think will happen wich is Darnold no.1 overall.  Anyhow....here it is....for entertainment purposes only.

 

This stirred up reddit a little while ago when a poster imported it from the Browns' section of another forum, Football's Future.

Personally I found the reported takes to be plausible, if not credible, in no small part due to confirmation bias, if nothing else.

However, regardless of the credibility you give it, you might find the described recon approach teams take to be as fascinating an account of corporate espionage as I did.

Below is the OP from the original site with later edits of the reddit back and forth removed.

Here's the link to the thread: https://forums.footballsfuture.com/topic/7725-the-coaches-want-rosen-at-1-other-serious-browns-draft-rumblings/

===============================================================================================================================================

**LONG POST ALERT***

I have some terrible news to inform everyone.

It looks like we really will be passing on Darnold....

THIS IS NOT SOME STUPID TROLL, or me doing the reverse psychology thing saying Baker's going first while secretly feeling giddy and knowing we're taking Darnold at 1 as a way to cope with the possibility the Browns might screw this up.

(Skip to The News below if u must)

As I've said before, my brother in law was a scout & personnel assistant exec for 11 years. I never ID'd his team when he was employed but he was canned in the mass firings when Mr. Reese and co. were fired from the Giants.

Although I'm often wrong about my own predictions, my b.o i. always cautioned me that what he'd tell me in terms of rumors has a chance of being misinformation put out by other teams to hide their true intentions. However, the vast majority of things he told me that I posted on this forum came true.

For example, for those people that actually paid attention to my posts on the old forum before last year's draft, you'd remember that based on what my b.o.i. heard at the combine I posted "the Bears will look to trade up for Trubisky with either the Browns at 1 or San Fran at 2." At the time, only 3 people responded to that post.

I also posted that "Sashi Brown was seen twice via my b.o.i.'s team spycraft department, 1st with Rick Smith of the Texans, and 2nd with Ryan Pace of the Bears at a private membership only room at a Wine & Cigar lounge in Indy" and... "Dont be surprised if we trade one of our picks to the Bears or Texans." That post received 2 responses and came true regarding the draft.

Teams have 10s and even 100s of thousands of dollar budget for their "spycraft" depts that includes things you wouldnt even believe all in order to propel the interests of their million dollar cash cows.

One of the more basic ways for teams to get inside info is to recruit disgruntled "soon to be fired" scouts and personnel staffers away from another team while they are still employed and possibly privy to strategic information. ALL teams try to do this. The best and smartest teams top execs leave scouts & even key personnel staffers in the dark on real rankings and strategy for fear of info leaking out. The elite top execs only inform the owner & a select few before the draft. Smart top execs run disinformation campaigns and put up false rankings in plain view of scouts and staffers so the disinfo will leak to teams giving them an advantage to operate under the veil of confusion.

The News: My b.o.i. told me this morning "the scuttlebut is that 6 Browns scouts & 1 personnel exec have been "respectably" flipped (i.e., they already agreed to move on to a team without breaching the trust of their former employee) due to being promised future jobs & due to being disgruntled"...However, 2 scouts and 1 personnel exec has been "unhonorably flipped" (i.e., informing on the teams draft beliefs while still employed to another team) with 1 person in particular "lacking any sort of ethics and is singing like canary so much that the team he's giving the info to is secretly laughing their a**es off b/c they know there's no way in hell they're hiring this guy after all this."

Apparently, there is already a major rift between the offensive coaches & the top personnel execs regarding the pick at 1 and ranking the QBs. It's likely irreconcilable.

In what was a shocker to me as a "Darnold no matter" what guy Todd Haley, Ken Zampese, Hue Jackson, and Al Saunders (he's become a de facto QB scout) are united in the belief that Josh Rosen is their guy, clear cut by a wide margin. The combine interview only confirmed this and they are all in. They all agree that Sam Darnold is their number 2, but there are some disagreements between the coaches on who is 3rd as some say Baker Mayfield while others surprisingly say Lamar Jackson. All the coaches apparently have Josh Allen 5th which completely surprised me.

The only personnel execs that mostly agree with the coaches are Eliot Wolf & Andrew Berry with Wolf having Darnold as QB1 and AB having had Darnold at 1 precombine but put Rosen ahead at 1 after the interview as Darnold tanked the interview and had no presence on the white board (I'd say did Mariota or Eli have a presence? Did Favre do a great job with X&Os on the board? No... but I digress..)

The rest of the top personnel staff (John Dorsey, Scot McCloughan--yes he's a top staffer more on that in a bit, and Alonzo Highsmith) along with Paul DePodesta have Baker Mayfield as their clear cut leader by a wide margin. The personnel guys then have Josh Allen number 2! Followed by Sam Darnold at 3 and Josh Rosen at 4. Paul DePo supposedly has it Baker, Rosen, Darnold, Jackson, & Allen.

Complicating the matter is apparently Scot McCloughan has come in waving a big stick as a former GM like he's the de facto top personnel guy when John Dorsey isnt around. He pulls his "when i was GM" card out in every debate. He is not consulting with other teams as that was just a farce to buy him time to finish some past due work that he and his company owed some teams for purchasing their scouting services. He is a full time Browns employee. This has in particular caused friction with Eliot Wolf as he thought he'd have that "right hand man assistant GM" role and it seems that Scot will have a powerful permanent position after the draft unless something changes and problems can be worked out.

Right now, John Dorsey is supposedly selling Jimmy that Baker is the top prospect as identified by Analytics and Traditional Scouting methodology with Paul DePo in his corner. Dorsey and Scot were blown away by Baker's combine interview while coaches thought he was too defensive.

As a temporary compromise just to keep the peace while much draft work is still to be done, the coaches and personnel execs are now strongly discussing that they will take their number 1 player on the big board Bradley Chubb at #1 overall and their QB at 4. Which to me makes ABSOLUTELY NO FU**ING sense at all when we need a QB.....but again I digress...

Distraught on Skype I immediately asked my b.o.i. " if this was all a joke" and "how certain are you that this isnt just elegant disinformation on the Browns part"?

He told me it's absolutely not a joke and the same spycraft dept heads (some of the best in the business) that he trusted in NY all those years have the Giants new personnel staff convinced that it is real enough to the point where everyone on the Giants staff except for new GM Dave Gettleman and an assistant staffer are operating as if it's true and they'll have their pick of all the QBs at 2 or at worst Baker Mayfield will go 1.

I've jokingly been saying Baker would go 1 but secretly believed Hue and co AND Dorsey all loved Sam Darnold at 1. I never even considered the thought that Josh Rosen wouldve been the unanimous selection among the coaches.

My only hope now is that some compromise is struck and we go Chubb at 1 and Rosen makes it to 4 based on the personality thing, or Hue and the coaches win out and we take Rosen at 1 to guarantee we get our QB, or that meathead Dorsey is running the most sophisticated 4D chess misinformation game utilizing scouts, coaches, and personnel people as pawns to fool the scouting community. I'll hold my breath on the latter.

Say goodbye to Darnold for real my friends. He's the hero we deserved...I'll never stop believing that based on the tape review. It just really sucks...

I'm now going to watch Rosen again and try to 1. convince myself I like him more than Darnold and 2. Somehow the coaches desires win out...wish me luck..

Oh...P.S. I hate-love (more hate than anything) this sh** team with all my heart.. 

[PIZ]

Cool.  Thanks for sharing.  I've read it 3 times.  Interesting.

Edited April 12, 2018 by PIZ

[Zerovoltz]

Just now, PIZ said:

Cool.  Thanks fir sharing.  I've read it 3 times.  Interesting.

If it has been posted here or alluded to here somewhere else...I apologize for being redundant if that is the case.

[KOKBILLS]

True or not it's a great read...

 

And I gotta say,  it makes the whole Bills/Darnold workout deal seem a little more understandable...

[MJS]

Hope that happens. Browns will be Browns, I suppose.

[Roundybout]

This hurts the Bills if the Giants won't trade down, right? It leaves our only trade option as 5 with the Broncos.

[major]

Thanks for the share. I'm sure the browns aren't the only team wth this kind of decision making insanity 

[billspro]

6 minutes ago, BillsEnthusiast said:

This hurts the Bills if the Giants won't trade down, right? It leaves our only trade option as 5 with the Broncos.

 

The Bills are in big trouble if the Giants want a QB and the Jets and Browns select Rosen and Mayfield. 

[Captain Murica]

I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if this happen. Hue is still there, so, that stench is still

lingering. 

[Lfod]

Definitely more believable then the last guy around here with a "source". Just saying. Past hits give credibility. 

Edited April 12, 2018 by Lfod

[Doc Brown]

11 minutes ago, BillsEnthusiast said:

This hurts the Bills if the Giants won't trade down, right? It leaves our only trade option as 5 with the Broncos.

If you believe the rumor that the only QB the Giants will take at #2 is Darnold.  If the Browns take somebody other than Darnold then the big 3 (Darnold, Rosen, and Mayfield) will be taken in the top 4 with the teams that own the spots.  I think scouts see right through Allen and believe he's too big of a risk to warrant that high of a pick.  

[BillsFan17]

Watch, the hold up for the second overall is actually Chubb and not Darnold lol

[Domdab99]

all that says to me id that people on the Browns board are as idiotic as people on the Bills board. 

[sven233]

Before getting into this, I am going to put a disclaimer out there that I am definitely taking the OP with a grain of salt, as it should be.  However, if the original report was to have any merit at all, it does lead me into a theory.

 

A lot of this makes sense if you think about it.  Up until very recently, Darnold was thought to be the unanimous #1 overall selection.  Then, all of a sudden in the last few days, the Bills decided to drop everything and fly out to CA to work out Darnold.  On top of this, it was reported for the longest time that the Jets, at 3 no less, never had a plan to work out Darnold because they thought they would have no chance at him.  All of a sudden, a report comes out that they have scheduled a workout with him as well.

 

It is very possible that word has gotten out that, no matter who ultimately goes first, it won't be Darnold.  Thus teams are scrambling to get workouts in with him.

 

What I definitely find interesting is that the Bills will be one of those teams working him out.  Two things jump out at me about this......

 

1.  The Bills are at 12.....  Whether Darnold was going first or not, he's not making it to 12.  So, why would the Bills suddenly pack up and travel across the country for 2-3 days (at probably their busiest time of year) to work out Darnold if they thought there was absolutely no chance of getting him?  Some would say a smokescreen, but really.....in the situation the Bills are in, everyone knows the Bills want a QB and are wanting to trade up for one at this point.  So, the Bills don't need a smokescreen to work out a QB since it is common knowledge they need one and want one desperately.  A smokescreen, in the Bills case for a QB, would be fooling nobody.  So, to me, this means 1 thing.....  The Bills realistically believe they can get high enough to get Darnold if he is their guy because, even if he doesn't go 1, he isn't getting past 3.

 

With that said, here is where I think it is time to take things a bit further

 

2.  Why would Darnold agree to work out for the Bills if he and his agent didn't believe the Bills had a shot at drafting him?  This is an angle I don't hear talked about nearly enough.  Darnold and his management team may not know if he is getting drafted at 1, but they do know he will not make it out of the top 3 (most likely).  So, why would Darnold and his management team work out for a team, like the Bills at 12, if they didn't believe that he could be selected by that team?  In the past couple weeks, there have been multiple reports of players getting injured, some really hurt, just weeks before the draft in these pre-draft workouts.  Why in the world would Darnold and his management team work out for a team outside the top 5, let alone the top 10, and risk injury, no matter how serious, so close to being a top pick in the draft?  That wouldn't be smart or good business at all.  All they would need to do is politely decline the workout not wanting to risk anything at this point.  So, to me, this may be an indication that the Bills have convinced Darnold and his management that they may have a path into the top 3 and would highly consider drafting him.  The Bills must have been convincing enough to Darnold and his management that they have that chance to draft him to get them agree to the workout.

 

For me, it has been pretty simple all along throughout this draft process......WHATEVER IT TAKES FOR DARNOLD, ROSEN, OR MAYFIELD.

 

Granted, it has mainly been about Rosen and Mayfield to this point because I have been figuring, like just about everyone else, that Darnold was going #1.  However, if the information in this post is true and teams have gotten wind that the Browns are going in a different direction, it really would explain the Bills suddenly flying out to LA and the Jets all of a sudden adding Darnold to their workouts as well after stating they wouldn't be working him out at all.

 

It has always been my feeling, that if there was any possible way to make it happen, the Bills would LOVE to draft Darnold.  I can pretty much guarantee he is their QB1 on the board and would love to get him. 

 

The draft can't come soon enough......

Edited April 12, 2018 by sven233

[Buffalo Barbarian]

Man reading all that makes we want to work in the NFL , also shows what a cluster truck the Browns are.

 

 

Also shows why we should draft Mayfield.

 

 

 

I hope those dumtards draft Jackson at four   

 

 

[White Linen]

1 hour ago, MJS said:

Hope that happens. Browns will be Browns, I suppose.

 

Why?  Rosen is a legit prospect. 

[Buffalo Barbarian]

1 hour ago, major said:

Thanks for the share. I'm sure the browns aren't the only team wth this kind of decision making insanity 

 

So NFL front offices are just smaller versions of fan boards arguing over players, lololololol     

 

 

[CNY315]

Interesting

[MJS]

1 hour ago, White Linen said:

 

Why?  Rosen is a legit prospect. 

 

Them not taking a QB first is supremely risky. I like Rosen, but there is no guarantee they'll get him at 4. If they like him that much, take him at 1.

[Zerovoltz]

26 minutes ago, MJS said:

 

Them not taking a QB first is supremely risky. I like Rosen, but there is no guarantee they'll get him at 4. If they like him that much, take him at 1.

 

This was the part of the article that really made the least sense....If they took Rosen, Darnold, or Mayfield....at 1 there is at least to me...still a very good chance the 2nd pick is a QB and the 3rd pick is 100% going to be a QB....Chubb has a MUCH better chance to be at 4 still than Rosen to be at 4.  Surely the coaches, scouts and GM all are well aware of that this is the case.