The Cleveland Browns are in a bit of a conundrum as it pertains to their quarterback position. With starter Deshaun Watson likely out for the season as he recovers from his second ruptured Achilles suffered in Week 7 of last season. As he enters year four of his five-year, fully guaranteed $230 million deal signed in 2022 when he was traded from the Texans, the Browns need to secure their future.
As the team prepares for its final mandatory minicamp (June 10-12) prior to training camp next month, the question on the shores of Lake Erie is who will man the signal caller position come the regular season opener against the rival Cincinnati Bengals. The team currently has four choices with former Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco, former first-round pick Kenny Pickett or one of this year’s draft picks in former Oregon star Dillon Gabriel or the most talented of the quartet in former Colorado star Shedeur Sanders.
Browns OC Comments Prove Team Has No Clue
Speaking with the media at team OTAs this past weekend, Browns first-year offensive coordinator Tommy Rees sounded as if he has no idea what they’re doing at the position.
“You can see them all winning the job, I think, right?” Tommy Rees told reporters on Wednesday. “And so in terms of the competition, we’re so early in the process. We’re so early in evaluating that. Yeah, I think, you know, we have a good group of guys that continue to push one another, and by the time September rolls around, we’ll be ready to go.”
That comment is absurd when you consider Flacco is 40 and is pretty much only serviceable in a pinch. Pickett has proven nothing during his time in the NFL. As the rookies go, Gabriel is average at-best, while Sanders is the guy who’s the most equipped to lead the team from the jump and he moves the meter as it pertains to the Browns raucous and intense fanbase.
Rees’ comments are a way of keeping Sanders humble and thinking, and that’s fine, but not let’s not sit here and act as if he isn’t the best and most gifted option they have. Once believed to be a sure fire first-round pick, Sanders inexplicably slipped to the fifth-round because of politics not because of his stellar play.
Sanders Shined At OTAs
While some take things like OTAs and minicamps with a grain of salt, and for good reason because it’s no contact, you still must consider who’s doing things the right way. For quarterbacks it’s a time to get comfortable with receivers and begin to understand the nuances of the offense. Per ESPN Cleveland’s Aaron Goldhammer Sanders was the best quarterback during the OTA period.
“I have come to a realization, oh boy, by the time we get to September… I think there’s a way Shedeur Sanders starts the first game,” Goldhammer said.
“Now that I’ve seen some videos and talked to a bunch of people and multiple practices, I think Shedeur Sanders was the best quarterback out there yesterday.
“I think now Shedeur is putting the draft slide behind him and showing why Mel Kiper thought he was the best quarterback in this draft.”
While Flacco will likely get the nod based on experience, expect Sanders to see the field early in 2025.
