Browns rumors: This Cleveland QB predicted to be traded before training camp, per NFL insider

As the Cleveland Browns’ quarterback room is among the most interesting situations in football, there also could be some questions about who will be the eventual starter come Week 1. While some have theorized the Browns’ schedule could determine the starter, Mike Florio speculates on who will be the odd man out in regards to the room.

Looking at Cleveland’s quarterbacks, they consist of Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and rookies Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel. Florio predicts that someone will have to be gone, and puts his personal opinion that it will be Pickett, where he could even be traded “before camp opens.”

“At some point, someone will be gone. So who’ll be the odd man out? My own personal belief is that it’ll be Pickett,” Florio wrote on NBC Sports. “Possibly with a trade before camp opens. He has an affordable (as quarterbacks go) $2.6 million salary for 2025, and he spent 2024 with Saints coach Kellen Moore in Philly. Pickett could provide more of a veteran presence than the quarterback room currently has. It’s also possible that the Browns could squat on Pickett while they wait for the injury bug to bite.”

“Regardless, it’s more likely that Pickett or Flacco will go. And Flacco has equity in the fan base,” Florio continued. “In theory, one of the rookies could be dealt; for now, however, the Browns may prefer to get a close look at which of the two is better equipped to become the long-term answer to a perpetually unanswered question.”

Will Browns’ Kenny Pickett be the odd man out?

As the Browns’ rookie in Sanders is shining so far during practice, one has to imagine that the team will start one of the two veterans in Flacco and Pickett. However, Florio’s point of view has Pickett gone with three active quarterbacks on the roster, and still the unknown regarding Deshaun Watson.

Conflicting with that viewpoint, Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot pointed to the schedule of Cleveland and said that with the grueling start of facing AFC and NFC North teams, it needs a veteran under center. While Flacco has the most experience, Kay Cabot would say that Cleveland sees “something special” in Pickett.

“I think actually when I look at the first part of the Browns schedule, it’s a grueling schedule,” Kay Cabot said to Rich Eisen Show guest host Suzy Shuster. “They start with two AFC North foes, and then they move into this space where they have five out of six on the road beginning in Week Four. That shouts to me, veteran quarterback. So I actually think it might come down to Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco. The Browns see something special in Kenny Pickett, maybe they’ll catch lightning in a bottle and he can be their version of Sam Darnold or someone like that.”

It remains to be seen who will stay or leave the team as Cleveland opens up the season on Week 1 against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, Sept. 7. The team looks to improve after finishing with a dreadful 3-14 record, which put them last in the division.