Former GM's resurfaced take on 2019 draft class will make Browns fans cry

Former Browns GM John Dorsey didn't like the WRs in the 2019 NFL Draft despite players like Deebo Samuel, DK Metcalf, and AJ Brown in it.

Think the 2023 Cleveland Browns could use a wide receiver like Deebo Samuel, DK Metcalf, or AJ Brown? Well, they had a shot at them in the 2019 NFL Draft, but in a resurfaced clip of former general manager John Dorsey, apparently, the team’s front office didn’t think there was a “marquee receiver” in that draft.

The 2019 NFL Draft was a bit of a mess for the Browns and general manager John Dorsey. The team didn’t have a first-round pick, thanks to the Odell Beckham Jr. trade, and of the seven players they did pick, two are already out of the league, and none are still with the Browns.

Worst of all, Dorsey is on video saying that he traded for Beckham because the draft doesn’t have any great receivers, and boy, was he wrong.

“There’s no really marquee — there really wasn’t a marquee receiver, per se,” Dorsey said in a press conference after Round 1 in 2019. “Tomorrow you’ll see some receivers start peeling off the board.

“There really wasn’t a marquee receiver…” former Browns GM John Dorsey regarding the 2019 WR draft class that included Deebo Samuel, AJ Brown, and DK Metcalf.

He wasn’t alone which makes groupthink dangerous. Leaning into objective data will help avoid groupthink decisions. pic.twitter.com/yISb3OxUoR

— Cory Yates (@CoryRAanalytics) December 7, 2023

Dorsey was right about the first-round pass-catchers. Marquise “Hollywood” Brown out of Oklahoma (No. 25, Baltimore Ravens) is an OK player at best, and N’Keal Harry from Arizona State (No. 32, New England Patriots) was a massive bust.

However, the WRs that came “peeling off the board” in Round 2 are now three of the best players at their position in the NFL.

South Carolina’s Deebo Samuel came off the board at No. 36 to the San Francisco 49ers, so in fairness to Dorsey, the Browns at 46 didn’t have a shot without a trade-up. However, after Cleveland took LSU cornerback Greedy Williams, five Pro Bowl WRs got picked.

Those players are AJ Brown (No. 51), DK Metcalf (No. 64), Diontae Johnson (No. 66), Terry McLaurin (No. 76), and Hunter Renfrow (No. 149).

Obviously, many teams didn’t see the incredible value in this WR draft class, but Browns fans have to be sad that it’s their former GM who is on video saying there aren’t any top-tier pass-catchers available.