Hue Jackson: Carson Wentz ‘wasn't the right fit' for the Browns

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The Cleveland Browns had the No. 2 pick in the 2016 NFL draft and a chance to pick Carson Wentz. 

They didn’t. 

Instead, the Browns traded the pick to the Eagles, moved down to 8 and then down to 15 to take wideout Corey Coleman. 

“Well, at that time, he wasn’t the right fit for us,” Browns head coach Hue Jackson said on a conference call with Philly reporters on Wednesday. “It had nothing to do with Carson. I think Carson is a tremendous person, player and has a bright future. At that time, we decided to go in a different direction.”

If Jackson thinks Wentz has a bright future, he might not see things the way the rest of his organization does. 

The Browns’ chief strategy officer, Paul DePodesta, recently said in a radio interview that the Browns didn’t take Wentz because they didn’t think he would become a top-20 quarterback in the NFL. The Eagles clearly disagree.

Will those comments motivate Wentz on Sunday? 

“That’s, for one, in the past,” Wentz said. “I’m a very motivated individual the way it is, so I don’t really have the need for extra motivation in this one.”

Head coach Doug Pederson told Cleveland reporters on his conference call that he didn’t think the comment from the Browns even “factors into [Wentz's] thinking.”

While Jackson spoke some complimentary words about Wentz, he said he has felt very comfortable with the Browns’ decision to pass on Wentz and trade out of the No. 2 pick. 

Does Jackson, who has a history as a quarterbacks coach, think Wentz can become a top-20 QB in the NFL? 

“I think it’s hard for me to say that,” Jackson said. “I think Carson Wentz can be whatever he wants to be. I really do. I think he’s going to be a good player. 

“But again, he’s at the Philadelphia Eagles and we made a decision to not go in that direction. I think a lot of things are going to be written and said because we didn’t, but it’s going to take a little time before that decision of what we did or what anybody else did will come to fruition. I think we have to just let it all play itself out and see what happens here pretty soon.”

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