During his three seasons at Penn State, Saquon Barkley rushed for 3,843 yards, added another 1,195 yards receiving, and totaled 53 touchdowns. While James Franklin and his staff (and fans) are coping with his departure, NFL general managers will be fighting over the right to draft him later this week.

Barkley is currently ranked as the No. 1 overall player on Mel Kiper’s Big Board. It would be a surprise if he slipped out of the top five selections. So here is an argument for why each team picking in the top five should draft Saquon Barkley.

No. 1 Cleveland Browns

Another year and another first overall pick for the ineptitude that is the Cleveland Browns. The football fans in Cleveland haven’t had much to root for in…20 years? Maybe more?

So what better way for a failing franchise to finally get back on track than to draft the guy that many draft experts agree is the best player available this year. Barkley would bring excitement to a franchise that hasn’t been very exciting for the entirety of this millennia.

It is true that the Browns need to find a franchise quarterback, but all of the top quarterbacks in this draft class are far from sure things. Plus, the Browns should be competitive after a trade for Tyrod Taylor over the offseason. Drafting Saquon Barkley adds a dynamic playmaker who would be ready to contribute from the first day of training camp.

It would make a lot of sense for the Browns to take him here and grab a quarterback with the No. 4 selection. But then again, it is the Browns, so they’ll probably find some way to mess things up.

No. 2 New York Giants

The Giants are another team that could go for a quarterback with their pick. They currently have Eli Manning on the roster, and while he has delivered two Super Bowl wins to the franchise during his tenure, he can’t play forever, and his performance has shown it.

Whether that’s because of his decline or because of his supporting cast is up for debate.

The Giants have two options here: They can plan for the future and draft the heir to Manning, or they can draft Barkley and make one more run at a Super Bowl with their veteran quarterback.

The Giants already have an electric playmaker on offense in Odell Beckham Jr. With Barkley in the fold the two could form one of the most devastating running back/receiver combinations in the league. Plus, they may consider themselves lucky to draft Barkley at the No. 2 spot.

No. 3 New York Jets

If Barkley were to still be available at this point in the first round, it would likely mean that both the Giants and the Browns decided to draft quarterbacks. That would leave the Jets in an awkward situation.

The Jets traded three second round picks to move up from the No. 6 spot in hopes of selecting a franchise quarterback. If the two teams directly in front of them draft quarterbacks, that would leave the Jets potentially having to select their third choice.

After shipping away valuable draft capital, that seems to be a bitter pill to swallow. Of course, they could always trade back, but would they be able to recoup the picks they lost? The likely answer is no.

Drafting Barkley here would be the ultimate consolation prize for the Jets. They may not have landed the quarterback they so desperately need, but drafting a playmaker like Barkley is certainly a better option than settling for their third choice at quarterback.

Plus, Barkley grew up rooting for the Jets so it seems like a very natural fit.

No. 4 Cleveland Browns

If the Browns opt to pass on Barkley the first time around, they’ll have a second shot at landing him with the No. 4 pick. At this point Cleveland will have almost definitely addressed its hole at quarterback and will be looking to simply draft the best player available.

At this spot, Barkley is far and away the best option on the board. It’s not out of the question that Cleveland chooses Bradley Chubb, who is certainly the most prized defensive player available. Having Chubb and Myles Garrett line up opposite of each other would be a scary sight.

(Not as scary as trying to tackle Barkley in the open field, though.)

No. 5 Denver Broncos

Denver, like every other team in the top five, could use its selection on a quarterback here. But at this point at least two and, possibly, even three quarterbacks will have been selected.

The Broncos made a splash in free agency on former Minnesota Viking Case Keenum. Although experts aren’t sure if he is a legitimate franchise quarterback or simply a one-year wonder, taking the third or fourth best quarterback in the draft with the fifth overall pick may not be the best valuable use of Denver’s top-five selection.

If Barkley does slip this far on draft day, it’ll probably take a lot less than the allotted ten minutes for the Broncos to make up their minds. Barkley is by far the best option for them at this point, and he would provide a steady presence in the backfield for Keenum to lean on.