Total Pro Sports
The Cleveland Browns are reportedly likely to trade one of the four quarterbacks on their depth chart, and it just might be highly touted rookie Shedeur Sanders.
With Deshaun Watson likely to miss most (if not all) of 2025 recovering from an Achilles tear, GM Andrew Berry has brought in four quarterbacks to compete for the starting job. He brought back 2023 Comeback Player of the Year Joe Flacco and acquired Kenny Pickett via trade with the Philadelphia Eagles, before drafting Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders.
During an appearance on 850 ESPN Cleveland, Jeremy Fowler reported that the Browns are likely to trade one of their four quarterbacks: Fowler suggested that it would either be Pickett, Gabriel or Sanders, believing they’ll ultimately decide to carry three quarterbacks on the roster:
“I still think they look at quarterback pieces like currency and value, so if somebody goes down to an injury in training camp they have somebody they can potentially trade. Maybe it’s Pickett, maybe it’s one of the rookies. But I can see that sort of maneuvering. I have a hard time thinking they keep (four) on the roster. I think it might be three. And then you can try a practice squad player or seek a trade.”
.@JFowlerESPN thinks that the Browns could trade one of their 4 QBs during training camp.
"I have a hard time thinking they keep four on the roster" pic.twitter.com/klBBb3H3Ki
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) May 28, 2025
It’s hard to imagine the Browns trading or cutting Flacco, unless he has a disastrous training camp performance. The Super Bowl 47 champion is the only quarterback among the four with experience in Kevin Stefanski’s offense, and his unexpected success in 2023 led Cleveland to a surprise playoff appearance.
A first-round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2022, Pickett never lived up to expectations and was traded to the Eagles. He backed up Jalen Hurts last season and won a Super Bowl 59 championship ring.
The 23-year-old Sanders was the consensus No. 2 quarterback in the 2025 NFL Draft behind Miami’s Cam Ward, who went first overall to the Tennessee Titans. Sanders was widely expected to be a top-10 pick, so it was an all-time stunner when he slipped down into round five at No. 144 overall.
Sanders’ unexpected fall doesn’t mean his NFL career is over. The Browns’ quarterback competition doesn’t have a clear-cut front-runner, so of course Sanders can step in and win the job away from Flacco, Pickett and Gabriel.
Also Read: Shedeur Sanders Is Now Blaming His Father For His Embarrassing NFL Draft Day Slide
