The Cleveland Browns are barreling toward an answer under center after taking the process deliberately slowly leading up to training camp, and Kenny Pickett is in the poll position.
Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com on Monday, July 21, wrote that Pickett has the edge to win the starting job heading into camp. That is a strong statement from Cabot specifically, as she called out the fourth-year pro and former first-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers for a lack of “pop” in his reps throughout spring practices.
“My guess is that Kenny Pickett still has a slight edge in terms of being No. 1 on the depth chart heading into training camp, but that could quickly change,” Cabot explained.
Browns’ Timeline for Choosing Starting QB Likely Mid-August
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Joe Flacco.
The Browns are liable to name a starting quarterback sooner than later, per Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. Still, Cabot expects it may be early-to-mid-August before the team names a starter and slots in its several backups accordingly.
It might not be easy to determine where the QBs fall on the imaginary depth chart in the first two weeks of camp, because the Browns will continue “two-spotting,” or splitting the four QBs on two different fields to maximize their reps.
Furthermore, Joe Flacco doesn’t need as many reps with the starters as the others, but that doesn’t mean he’s not firmly in the mix for the Week 1 start, because he is. I also think we’ll continue to see Dillon Gabriel get some reps with the starters because he handled his demanding spring workload very well. By the time the Browns practice against the [Philadelphia] Eagles on Aug. 13 and 14, it will be easier to see which way the [they] are leaning
Breer wrote on July 14 that he expects either Pickett or Flacco to win the starting job Week 1, as Cleveland will begin the year with the intention of winning as many games as possible. Both are NFL veterans, and the Browns face a brutal six-game slate to open the schedule that starts with the Cincinnati Bengals and progresses to five playoff teams consecutively after that.
Browns Rookies Unlikely to See Action Until Mid-Season, When Team May Trade Veteran QB
GettyCleveland Browns quarterbacks Dillon Gabriel (left) Shedeur Sanders (right).
The common perception around the league is that Cleveland will eventually trade either Flacco or Pickett, though the timing of any such move is the more interesting layer.
Assuming Pickett starts, he could get injured and/or the Browns could begin the season with three or four straight losses. In either scenario, or both, the team may want the other veteran rostered to see if he can catch lightning in a bottle, which Flacco did down the stretch of the 2023 campaign.
Gabriel and fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders make more sense down the line, either once the Browns lose the season, or when a couple more defeats would slam the door on contention. The trade deadline isn’t until November 5, which affords the Browns eight games and then the bye week to decide if they want to trade a QB, and which player would make the most sense.
Should a dire situation arise somewhere else in the league and offer Cleveland a chance to maximize the trade value for one of its veteran signal-callers, the franchise might decide to move more quickly. If not, the Browns have essentially half of the upcoming season to make a final decision on which veteran quarterback, if either, they want to keep rostered through the end of the 2025 campaign.
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