Jackson says he wanted Browns to draft Wentz in 2016

In his first public comments since being fired as head coach of the Cleveland Browns, Hue Jackson said he wanted to draft Carson Wentz second overall in the 2016 NFL Draft, but was met with resistance from the front office.

"Oh my gosh, yes. Did I like Carson Wentz? Hell yes," Jackson told Mary Kay Kabot of Cleveland.com. "He did something that no other quarterback did. I give them three minutes to memorize the book and put on the (white) board. He put it all on the board in two minutes and 48 seconds. I've never had a guy do that ever in my coaching career."

Jackson was axed by the Browns on Monday, midway through his third season, after compiling an atrocious record of 3-36-1. He was hailed as an offensive wizard when he took the Browns job on the heels of a coordinator stint with the Cincinnati Bengals, but his success there never materialized with the Browns.

"But the plan was never to take a quarterback that year," he said. "It was all about trading back to get picks. If you're doing that you've got to pick the right players.''

The Browns had another chance to draft a franchise quarterback in 2017, but passed on Mitchell Trubisky, Patrick Mahomes, and Deshaun Watson before grabbing DeShone Kizer in the second round.

"I like Patrick and Deshaun a lot," said Jackson. "I got to know them both. Pat and I had really good relationship. I loved his skill set. I loved his ability to throw the ball around and all of that. I built a good rapport with him. I had them ranked very close to each other.''

Cleveland wound up picking defensive end Myles Garrett first overall in 2017. The Browns finally pulled the trigger on a quarterback in 2018, selecting Baker Mayfield with another No. 1 overall pick.

Jackson noted that he believes Mayfield will develop into a "sensational" player, albeit under the tutelage of a different coach.