ClutchPoints
After an eventful first half of the offseason, the Cleveland Browns’ quarterback competition will be one of the most-watched positional battles of the 2025 training camp period. With four names in the mix, at least one player is likely on the move. Based on the early indications, Kenny Pickett seems like the Browns’ top early trade candidate.
Pickett, 27, joined the team in March via trade. The Browns acquired him from the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for Dorian Thompson-Robinson and a 2025 fifth-round pick. Philadelphia used the pick in another trade with the Kansas City Chiefs to move up one spot and take linebacker Jihaad Campbell in the first round.
By trading for Pickett, the Browns gave themselves three quarterbacks to work with. DeShaun Watson returned as the incumbent starter, albeit likely out for the entire 2025 season with an Achilles injury. Cleveland also signed 40-year-old Joe Flacco in free agency to compete for the starting job. The room got even more crowded in April when general manager Andrew Berry added Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders in the 2025 NFL Draft.
With training camp on deck, the Browns have only gotten a brief look at all their quarterbacks during offseason minicamp. While they certainly want to keep a veteran around to guide their rookies, Flacco appears to have the early edge over Pickett. Despite his age, Flacco has a much longer track record of success and familiarity with the organization, having won the 2023 Comeback Player of the Year award with Cleveland.
As a former first-round pick, Pickett has multiple seasons of starting experience under his belt. He also joins the team with championship experience, having won a ring with the Eagles. However, he is clearly the Browns’ top trade candidate entering their 2025 offseason training camp.
Unless Pickett has an unbelievable training camp, he will likely not be a part of the Browns’ final roster. Few teams keep three quarterbacks on their roster, let alone four. While Watson will spend the year on injured reserve, Cleveland still has to narrow down its list between Flacco, Pickett, Gabriel and Sanders.
As a fifth-round pick, Sanders would seem like the odd man out in any other situation. Yet, the Browns’ quarterback room is anything but ordinary. Sanders’ uniquely unfortunate draft fall suddenly makes him a first-round prospect with the conditions of a fifth-round pick. Instead of being the franchise quarterback many saw him as, Sanders now finds himself in a neck-and-neck battle with Gabriel. Both players have impressed in their own ways early on, likely keeping both on the team.
The Browns’ future lies with either Gabriel or Sanders, but they seem to want both players to begin their careers on the bench behind one of their veterans. That leaves one of Flacco or Pickett to start Week 1, and the other to receive the boot. On paper, the 27-year-old Pickett seems like the better choice, but Flacco appears to be Kevin Stefanski’s...
