Browns Have Very Attainable Path To No. 1 Overall Pick

With some help from the New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans, the Cleveland Browns could very well end up with the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft by the end of the weekend

Dec 29, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; A Cleveland Browns fan holds a sign during the second half against the Miami Dolphins at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

A mere four months ago, there was so much hope around the start of a new Cleveland Browns season.

After overcoming numerous injuries to make the playoffs as a wild card team in 2023, the 2024 campaign came with Super Bowl aspirations. Those high hopes quickly dissipated after the team go off to a catastrophic 1-6 start to the season under quarterback Deshaun Watson. 11 weeks later, Week 18 is here and with the Browns sitting at 3-13, fans have traded in Super Bowl talk for a more familiar conversation about the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

That's what the Browns are playing for in a Week 18 season finale with the Baltimore Ravens, and getting there is not all that far-fetched.

As things stand today, Cleveland holds the No. 3 pick in April's draft. A loss to the its AFC North Rival would guarantee a top three pick. To get to one, some help is needed.

The current holders of No. 1 overall pick is the New England Patriots, who face the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. In a normal week that would sound like a pretty daunting task. The kicker, however, is that the Bills are locked into the No. 2 seed in the playoffs and a win or loss does nothing to impact their status in the postseason.

Head coach Sean McDermott made it known that the team will start star quarterback Josh Allen, strictly to keep his consecutive start streak alive for a 116th game. Other than that, McDermott plans on giving the majority of his starters the week off, prioritizing health for the playoffs. That opens the door for New England to potentially steal a win, looking to end a rebuilding year on a positive.

Pulling that off centers largely around Drake Maye's availability. He was limited all week with a right hand injury, but Patriots offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt said they expect Maye not only to play, but to play the entire game. It's a perfect storm for a Pats win at 1 pm on Sunday.

That's one team standing in the Browns way. The Tennessee Titans are the other one, and facing a similar situation as New England in Week 18. Their opponent the Houston Texans are safely the No. 4 team in the AFC, with no opportunity to move and higher or slip lower into a wild card spot.

Houston is in a bit of a different situation than Buffalo, having not played their best football in several weeks, including a 31-2 blowout loss to the Ravens on Christmas Day. Head coach DeMeco Ryans said this week that his starters will be "ready to go," and that they'll "see how the game goes."

Those comments at least suggest that he'll play his starters for some of Sunday's game, looking, perhaps, to build some momentum before the playoffs. It seems doubtful Ryans plays his starters for the entire game though, and the Titans. already beat the Texans once this year. They're at home this time around.

According to ESPN, the Browns have a 9% chance to earn the No. 1 overall pick entering the weekend. That may not seem very high, but to quote Lloyd Christmas from Dumb and Dumber, "you're telling me there's a chance!"

Yes, and it's not that exhaustive to see that possibility becoming a reality.