Mike Pettine has it pretty good in Cleveland for a first-time head coach. He has a quarterback of the future in Johnny Manziel, thanks to the 2014 NFL Draft, and should field one of the best starting lineups in the division after a productive offseason.
Plus, in a pass happy league he won't have to worry about the cornerback position for quite some time. The Browns recently locked up Joe Haden to a blockbuster extension and the team added one of the best in the draft with ninth overall pick Justin Gilbert.
That was enough to make former team scout and current NFL Media analyst Daniel Jeremiah a little jealous of the situation, saying Wednesday on "Path to the Draft" that the combo of Gilbert and Haden gives Cleveland one of the best corner tandems in the league.
"If we're going to stress young pairs, I don't know who is more athletic than these two," Jeremiah said. "When they get the ball in their hands, they are going to do something with it. I think they're both playmakers, and Mike Pettine's defense has two pretty good building blocks."
We don't exactly know what Gilbert can do in the NFL, but his ability to shut down Big 12 receivers over the years certainly gives him a great resume entering the league. Haden should benefit from a talented running mate in the coming years, too, since teams won't just be able to avoid him.
While there are young cornerback tandems in the NFL -- rookie Bradley Roby and Aqib Talib in Denver, Jimmy Smith and Lardarius Webb in Baltimore spring to mind -- it is tough to say that anybody has quite the blend of speed and coverage skills as the pair in Cleveland does.
"They need to be talented, because in this league, especially in the AFC, if you want to get to a Super Bowl with the Cleveland Browns ... you're going to have to go through Peyton Manning and company," Jeremiah said. "To get to that ultimate prize, having two talented corners is a good way to build your defense."
New general manager Ray Farmer and Pettine seem to agree.
As for whether the Haden-Gilbert duo is enough to make Cleveland a Super Bowl contender, we'll just have to see about that down the road.
Follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter @BryanDFischer.
