Ozzie Newsome did, in fact, use the word "upside,'' thus fulfilling league draft-day policy (that goes for every league's draft, by the way). Otherwise, he, Brian Billick and scouting director Eric de Costa had much praise for what the new first-round pick, Haloti Ngata, can do. For one thing, he's not the slow, lazy tub of goo described by so many immediately after the pick on ESPN.

For one, Newsome said, "When we got Tony Siragusa, they said he takes plays off; when we got Sam Adams, they said he takes plays off.''

Added de Costa, "They probably didn't notice that he plays six or seven plays a game on special teams.'' True, he blocked seven kicks in his career, which is impressive for anybody, much less someone who plays in the middle of the line and weighs close to 340 pounds.

More from de Costa, asked about his weight and conditioning, which the TV critics harped on: "I don't care if he weighs 480 if he holds teams to two yards a carry.''

Newsome, de Costa and Brian Billick all mentioned Ngata's maturity - "tremendous maturity,'' Billick said - and made note of the fact that he is much more ready to play right away than the player who he will be replacing and whom he will be most often compared to, Maake Kemoatu.

Which is all lovely, but all things considered, why move up one spot (even at the cost of "only'' a sixth-round pick, which is never a sure "only'' thanks to a certain three-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback picked in that round) to get a guy Savage might not have taken for the Browns anyway?

"We had him rated very high,'' Newsome said, "and at the end of the day, knowing I had him, moving up to get him, took the risk out of it.''

And if nothing else, this is a safe drafting organization, and has been right way more often than it's been wrong.

Meanwhile, Savage took FSU linebacker Kamerion Wimbley - who, everybody had assumed until that late love for Ngata emerged from Cleveland, was the guy the Browns wanted from the beginning.

Now, the Ravens have one more pick today, in the second round, 44th overall. And after all the talk of hoping for more picks in the first three rounds, they might stay right where they are and live with one fewer picks on the second day.