Everyone around the NFL knows that the Cleveland Browns are carrying more quarterbacks than they have use for, so it’s only a matter of time before the franchise flips at least one of them for an asset or two in return.
The real questions are who should that player be, and when is the opportune time to trade him?
According to Matt Holder of Bleacher Report, it’s Joe Flacco. As for the timing — whenever the first real need arises for a veteran quarterback elsewhere in the league prior to Week 1.
“While Flacco could be the starting quarterback in Cleveland this year, let’s be honest, the Browns are going to have a tough time being a playoff contender,” Holder wrote Wednesday, July 16. “So, allowing Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders to see if they can be the franchise’s future behind center is a better longterm plan than trotting out a 40-year-old who is on a one-year deal. Meanwhile, trading Flacco would yield some draft capital from a team that could use a veteran backup.”
Minnesota Vikings Already in Market for Veteran QB Trade
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco.
Typically the summer market for a player like Flacco develops due to injury. However, in the case of the Minnesota Vikings, it arguably already exists.
J.J. McCarthy is the starter heading into this season, but he’s also just 22 years old and missed the entirety of his rookie campaign with a knee injury. Sam Howell is currently QB2 with Brett Rypien and undrafted rookie Max Brosmer slotting in behind him.
Vikings insiders have discussed the team hunting for a veteran QB, with several mentions of a Kirk Cousins reunion in recent weeks, should Howell struggle in training camp. But even if he doesn’t, Minnesota is at the top of the market for a viable quarterback considering the relative youth and inexperience in that position group coupled with the otherwise proven Super Bowl-caliber of the rest of the Vikings’ offensive roster.
Browns Can Benefit by Waiting as Long as Possible on Trade of Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Kenny Pickett.
Flacco, who is making $4.25 million this year, is a better option financially for the Vikings than Cousins given their chosen path to franchise building.
Part of the theoretical advantage Minnesota has cultivated includes McCarthy playing on a rookie-scale deal that pays him just $22 million over a four-year contract. He is on the cusp of entering the second season of that agreement in September.
Cleveland is liable to quickly parse its current QB competition once training camp begins next week. If Flacco wins the starting job, then perhaps the Browns can take the same approach to the trade market with Pickett as the prize.
Minnesota would still be a sensible destination, and a Day-3 draft asset — perhaps one as high as a fifth-round pick — would remain a seemingly fair swap.
That said, it would likely behoove Cleveland to wait on a deal for as long as possible. The Browns could, perhaps, shroud the QB1 spot in a bit of mystery for a week or two longer, or name Flacco QB2 if he slots in behind Pickett to keep his trade value up.
The longer Cleveland waits to deal one of its two veteran quarterbacks, the better the market is likely to be. Both injuries and performance issues tend to create the need for a veteran QB or two across the NFL ahead of Week 1, and the Browns should be able to do better in a trade if there are two or three bidders to drive up the price.
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