CLEVELAND — For a third straight year, the Browns did not have a first-round selection in the NFL draft, having traded those picks to Houston for quarterback Deshaun Watson. In fact, Cleveland hadn't even made a second-round pick since 2021, but that finally changed Friday night in Detroit, and it did so in grand style.
With the 54th overall selection, the Browns chose Ohio State defensive tackle and Streetsboro native Michael Hall Jr. Former Cleveland lineman Carl Nassib, who in 2021 became the first openly gay player in NFL history with the Las Vegas Raiders, announced the pick from the stage in Detroit.
It's a true homecoming for Hall, a legend for the Rockets who led the program to an 11-1 season and its its first-ever playoff win as a junior in 2019, tallying 17 tackles for loss and five sacks in the process. In three years with the Buckeyes, he was a two-time third-team All-Big Ten selection, finishing his college career with 10 tackles for loss and six sacks.
At OSU's pro day, Hall performed well, with a 4.76-second 40-yard dash time, a 33-inch vertical leap, and a 9-foot 3-inch broad jump. At 6-foot-3 and weighing 290 points, the 20-year-old is considered somewhat undersized for a DT, but according to NFL.com's Lance Zierlein, "Hall plays with good pound-for-pound strength and stands up to bigger players in front of him."
The Browns' stable of defensive tackles greatly improved last season with the addition of players like Dalvin Tomlinson, Shelby Harris, and Maurive Hurst II. The club also added veteran Quinton Jefferson this past winter, but with multi-year starter Jordan Elliot now in San Francisco, Hall will have a chance to earn some reps in the rotation.
Cleveland is slated to pick once more on Day 2 of the draft, currently holding the 85th overall pick in the third round.