AFC Notes: Andrew Berry, Omar Khan, Bengals, Browns, Steelers

Bengals

2023 first-round DE Myles Murphy reflected on what his life was like preparing for the draft a year ago. After his first season in the NFL, Murphy shared what he’s learned and how he’s using that to get better.

“There are two types of conditions — there is a Combine condition and there is football condition,” Murphy said, via Jay Morrison of Pro Football Network. “I was in great Combine condition a year ago but not in good football condition. So I feel like right now I’m in really good football condition. My endurance is great, the strength is there. So I feel like my preparation for this upcoming season is much better than it was last year.”

“I feel like the biggest mental difference from college to now is the playbook is a little bit easier, but the on-field, in-game adjustments when the crowd is extremely loud is a lot more difficult. That’s the biggest game changer, in my opinion. Toward the end of the season, I was predicting and knowing what [the play-callers] were already going to say, what defense it was. So I was most definitely moving faster, knowing what to do and what to expect from our side of the ball and the offensive line. And I always had a plan when it came to pass rushing, especially in the second half of the season.”

• Marshall OL Dalton Tucker had a virtual pre-draft meeting with the Bengals. (Justin M)

Browns

Browns GM Andrew Berry told reporters during his pre-draft press conference that the team is looking forward to having their first-round pick back in the 2025 NFL Draft.

“We are looking forward to having one back next year for sure,” Berry said, via Scott Petrak. “Look, you want as many picks, as many high picks as possible. I wouldn’t say that I miss it on Thursday or Friday night. I’m probably more focused on the players we can acquire and (first-rounders are) not necessarily the end all, be all. They’re a great resource to have, but how you can deploy them can be in a variety of ways.”

“There are a variety of ways to build a team,” Berry added. “The reality of the first-round picks, like the league hit rate, it’s like 50%. They’re lottery tickets — they’re good lottery tickets at the end of the day and they’re highly, highly valuable — but even if you have a first-round pick, it’s certainly not a certain thing. I understand that from an external perspective because those are usually the most well-recognized prospects coming into the draft, but we’re excited about maximizing the group of players that we can acquire during the weekend and there’s still a number of good players up and down the draft board.”

Steelers

Below-average quarterback play has plagued the Steelers over the last few seasons which led to a complete overhaul in the room this offseason. Despite already adding QBs Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, Pittsburgh GM Omar Khan isn’t ruling out selecting another in the draft.

“I think it’s not realistic that we’ll be taking a quarterback in Round 1, if that’s what you’re asking, no,” Khan said, via the Steelers’ YouTube. “There are some good players there, and I wouldn’t close the door on anything. If there’s an opportunity to improve that room, obviously, we’ll look at it, but like you said, we’ve got three guys who are on one-year deals and we have to be open to it.”

Steelers HC Mike Tomlin said the team doesn’t have any glaring needs and they feel comfortable heading into the draft.

“You know, it’s two means by which we develop our football team for 2024 that goes with existing talent: It’s free agency and the draft. We’ve been very active in free agency and that makes you really comfortable as we lean in on draft weekend,” Tomlin said, via Steelers Wire. “We’ve addressed a lot of needs and you don’t feel overly thirsty in any particular.”