It is extraordinarily troublesome to win within the NFL, even with a high quarterback on the roster.
Which makes it obscure why the Cleveland Browns have, for the higher a part of the final 25 years, been attempting to win with a ragtag bunch of gamers on the recreation’s most essential place.
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Cleveland has tried all the things over time, from drafting quarterbacks excessive and low to a gradual procession of bridge quarterbacks and reclamation initiatives, all to no avail.
The group remains to be attempting, because it at the moment has one of many worst quarterback rooms within the NFL. And with the 2026 NFL Draft simply weeks away, all eyes will as soon as once more be on the quarterback place when the Browns are on the clock.
That everlasting quest may lead Cleveland to the doorstep of LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier come draft weekend.
Name: Garrett Nussmeier
Position: Quarterback
Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 203 kilos
College: LSU Tigers
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2025 Stats: 9 video games, 67.4 completion share, 1,927 passing yards, 12 touchdowns, 5 interceptions, 133.8 quarterback score
Career Stats: 40 video games, 64.0 completion share, 7,699 passing yards, 52 touchdowns, 24 interceptions, 138.6 quarterback score
Average “Big Board” Position as of Publishing Date from Mock Draft Database: 86th total, projected third spherical
The Draft Network’s Grade/Round Value: Round 2 – Winning Starter
What an Expert is Saying
Undersized pocket passer with official arm expertise that has not been capable of make up for some flaws in his recreation. Nussmeier is inconsistent in diagnosing coverages and dealing via progressions, which limits his potential to counter what defenses present him. He performs with a gunslinger’s mindset and doesn’t persistently prioritize ball safety. He has a compact launch and might spin spectacular throws from off-platform angles when wanted. He will make a throw that makes you a believer in a single sequence, however he typically follows that up with a turnover that reignites the doubt. He has enough mobility within the pocket and limits his sack depend. Teams might want to stability Nussmeier’s errors and sturdiness considerations in opposition to his potential to enhance on his LSU output.
What an Expert is Saying (Bonus Round):
Nussmeier is an undersized quarterback with enough arm power and mobility. He brings some sturdiness considerations and a historical past of turnovers, however his instincts, pocket consciousness, anticipation, and ball placement give him a path to develop right into a starter in the proper system.
A gritty, aggressive participant, he performs via contact and doesn’t flinch within the pocket—evidenced by a recreation in opposition to Oklahoma in 2024 when he returned from a shoulder damage after lacking solely six performs to steer the group to a 37-17 win. But I wish to see him follow self-preservation. He appears uncomfortable sliding on the finish of runs, which is a priority given his aggressive play type, smaller body, and damage historical past.
A group will draft Nussmeier to be an early-career backup with the intention of growing him right into a starter down the street. Tony Romo is the high-end NFL comp, however Gardner Minshew II and Jake Browning are additionally affordable projections.
Fit with the Browns
Heading into the 2025 season, Nussmeier was a quarterback who many thought could be a first-round decide on this 12 months’s draft. But accidents restricted him to simply 9 video games with the Tigers, and he was unable to complete his faculty profession on a excessive notice.
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Nussemeier has expertise after spending 5 years at LSU, however has he already hit his ceiling as a quarterback? There is little question that the Browns want all the assistance they’ll get on the place, however they need to be setting their sights on one thing greater than the subsequent Gardner Minshew II.
Browns Player Drafting Could Impact
If the Browns draft a quarterback, then Dillon Gabriel is probably going the odd man out. (He could also be anyway.) If the Browns draft an excellent quarterback, then Shedeur Sanders might be taking his present elsewhere this fall.
Priority: Nothing else issues till you get a quarterback.
What are your ideas on Garrett Nussmeier? Should the Browns take a raffle on him? Let us know within the feedback!