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Browns Trade Up, Draft Safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren

4/25/2026

Summary

Browns Draft McNeil-Warren

Cleveland Browns chose safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren with the 58th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
They obtained the 58th pick by sending No. 70 and No. 107 to the San Francisco 49ers for No. 58 and No. 152.
At Toledo he played 48 games, recording 214 tackles, five interceptions—including a pick-six—and 13 passes defensed.
PFF noted he allowed a 56.5 passer rating in 2025, with two interceptions, four pass breakups and six receptions surrendered.

Summary

Berry Trades Up

General manager Andrew Berry traded up for safety McNeil-Warren, his second first-two-round move since 2020.
Assistant GM Catherine Hickman said McNeil-Warren’s size and ball-hawk skills give the Browns defensive flexibility amid a safety room that now includes free-agent safety Grant Delpit and free-agent safety Ronnie Hickman, creating a starting competition.
The trade-up also yielded a fifth-round pick, which Cleveland used to draft tackle Austin Barber.

Summary

Browns Trade Picks

The Browns entered the second round a round early after swapping picks with the San Francisco 49ers.
Before the trade, Cleveland had already used the No. 39 overall pick that night.
The team also acquired the No. 74 selection in a Thursday trade-back with the Kansas City Chiefs.
These moves give the Browns seven picks in the final four rounds, adding flexibility to build depth beyond safety.

History

Historical Context

In 1999 the reactivated Cleveland Browns used their expansion-draft status to take quarterback Tim Couch with the NFL’s first-overall pick, the franchise’s first such selection since its 1996 relocation and one of five #1 picks in its history. The selection illustrated how the Browns leveraged their top pick to address a key need, a strategy teams still employ when swapping picks.

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Browns Draft McNeil-Warren

Cleveland Browns chose safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren with the 58th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
They obtained the 58th pick by sending No. 70 and No. 107 to the San Francisco 49ers for No. 58 and No. 152.
At Toledo he played 48 games, recording 214 tackles, five interceptions—including a pick-six—and 13 passes defensed.
PFF noted he allowed a 56.5 passer rating in 2025, with two interceptions, four pass breakups and six receptions surrendered.

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