6:55pm: If the Cowboys take Ezekiel Elliott at No. 4, Ed Werder of ESPN.com (Twitter link) hears that they won’t move back into the first round for a quarterback. Rather, Dallas could target a defensive lineman.
6:41pm: Both the Browns and the Cowboys could consider trading into the back end of the first round, reports Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link), who speculates that a quarterback — such as Memphis’ Paxton Lynch — could be the target of both clubs.
Both Cleveland and Dallas had been rumored to be in the market for quarterbacks earlier in the draft process (especially when the Browns still held the No. 2 overall pick), but with the Rams and Philadelphia all but certain to select Jared Goff and Carson Wentz, there might not be another QB option who either club is willing to take at either No. 4 (Cowboys) or No. 8 (Browns). But if either team is able to move up from the beginning of the second round — where Cleveland currently holds pick No. 32 and Dallas has pick No. 34 — it might leap at the chance to secure a signal-caller.
One added benefit, of course, would be obtaining a fifth-year option on whatever player (quarterback or no) the Browns or Cowboys might select at the end of the first round. Fifth-year options only pertain to first-round picks, so for Cleveland, moving up just one spot might be critical, as a fifth-year option would enable the team to control its draftee through the 2020 season.
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