INDIANAPOLIS — Andrew Berry, who spent a year under wheelin’ and dealin’ John Dorsey and then another year under Eagles dealmaker Howie Roseman, is open to trading up or down from the 10th pick in April’s draft.
“We’re going to be flexible in that regard," he said during his NFL Scouting Combine podium interview. "Any strategic maneuver that allows us to reach our goals, acquire good players and the right people for our organization, we’re not going to be bound to be staying static, going down, going up. We’re going to do anything possible that allows us to improve the roster.’’
Berry isn’t the one willing to be crafty on draft day. Many other GMs will listen to offers for top 10 picks, including the Giants’ Dave Gettleman, who has No. 4.
“Absolutely we’re open for business,” Gettleman said on Tuesday at the combine. "Again, whatever we do is going to be in our best interest. Trading back has its danger. What happens if ... we’re at four. Let’s say we trade back to eight. There are only four players that we like. What if they’re all gone? Now what are you going to do? Trade back again? You can trade yourself back out of good players.
"But, to answer your question, we're open."
The prevailing sentiment is that the Browns will stay at No. 10 and take one of the many premier offensive tackles. But Berry, who was with the Browns when Sashi Brown traded down from No. 2 in 2016 and then down again from No. 8, isn’t conceding anything. The Browns could land a tackle in free agency and free themselves up for another position at No. 10.
"In general, our focus is on any player that we think can improve the roster,’’ he said. “Now specifically to the offensive line, we’ve talked a lot about being a QB-centered organization and certainly every year our priority is going to be make sure to build a strong position group that can keep Baker [Mayfield] upright and give him the time ultimately to throw the ball.
“This class in particular has a lot of talented players across the different positions and we're going to identify guys that fit our profile, fit our organization, that can add competition across both sides of the ball."
Browns expected to pursue Chase Daniel; Case Keenum on the radar
Most of the top offensive tackles will be available at No. 10, except for perhaps Louisville’s Mekhi Becton, widely regarded as No. 1 in the class. If there are several available as No. 10 approaches, they could move back a few spots and pick up more assets. NFL.com’s latest three-round mock has the Browns trading back to No. 16 with the Falcons and selecting Georgia tackle Andrew Thomas.
Much of the groundwork for such trades is laid in Indy and next month at the NFL Annual Meeting in Palm Beach, Fla. You can bet Berry will be ready. Afterall, he learned from two of the best.
* On Ryan Grigson joining the Browns
It appears Grigson, the former Browns personnel executive and former Colts GM, will join the Browns full-time after the draft, when personnel staffs revamp. For now, Grigson, who was Berry’s boss in Indy, is consulting for the Browns through this free agency and draft cycle.
“Ryan is going to serve in an advisory role this spring,’’ Berry said. “And with Ryan we view him [as] a former general manager, a former NFL executive of the year, a very respected talent evaluator across the league. Think he can provide a wealth of wisdom during this draft cycle and then post-draft we’ll kind of look at football operations and really see if it’s a long-term fit."
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