“It’s Hard To Pass On Travis Hunter”: AFC Executive Defends Cleveland Browns Trading Down With Jacksonville Jaguars In the 2025 NFL Draft (Report)

The Cleveland Browns fanbase was not thrilled when they traded down with the Jacksonville Jaguars from second overall to fifth overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. Cleveland passed on drafting Travis Hunter and Abdul Carter.

The Browns selected defensive tackle Mason Graham from the Michigan Wolverines instead. Cleveland also acquired Jacksonville’s 2026 first-round pick in the trade as well. Despite the Browns fanbase not being thrilled with the trade, some executives across the NFL feel that Cleveland did just fine in the 2025 NFL Draft.

NFL Executive Defends the Cleveland Browns Trading Down with the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2025 NFL Draft

ESPN.com Jeremy Fowler wrote about NFL executives, scouts picking their favorite 2025 offseason moves. An AFC executive defended the Browns trading down with the Jaguars in the 2025 NFL Draft and said,

“It’s hard to pass on Travis [Hunter] or Abdul [Carter] at 2, but you get a good young defensive tackle [in Mason Graham]. … That’s a position that’s really expensive now, so to get a rookie-scale player there is crucial. And this is really about 2026. Can they get their quarterback of the future there? They are going to find out.”

Another thing that can’t be overlooked with this trade is that Cleveland was also able to acquire the 36th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft from Jacksonville. The Browns selected Quinshon Judkins, a running back from the Ohio State Buckeyes with that pick.

In all seriousness, selecting Graham to be paired with Myles Garrett on the defensive line was a good move for the Browns. Graham was projected to be a Top 5 selection in the 2025 NFL Draft anyways. Cleveland having two first rounds picks in the 2026 NFL Draft will no doubt put them in the driver’s seat to do something special.

If the Jaguars are bad and so are the Browns, will they use one of those picks to draft a quarterback of the future or will they do something else with it? Cleveland will find out if either rookie Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders will be the long-term answer for the franchise. If not, they could just draft someone near the top of the 2026 NFL Draft. It remains to be seen if they made a mistake trading down with the Jaguars or not.

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