Kenny Pickett going down with a worrisome hamstring injury that could sideline him for at least a week made veteran Joe Flacco the favorite to win the Cleveland Browns' competition for their starting quarterback job this summer.
On Monday, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated shared that he believes Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski would "like to have a starter going into" Cleveland's preseason finale versus the Los Angeles Rams on Aug. 23.
"There still isn’t a leader," Breer wrote about the quarterback battle that also involves rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders. "...Flacco —who got a de facto bye through the spring so the coaches could get a better look at the other three — has been steady and smooth running the offense. Kenny Pickett’s keeping up with him and adds an element with his legs (he broke off a 45-yard touchdown run in team drills the other day) that the others don’t. Third-rounder Dillon Gabriel’s adapting quickly, showing accuracy, instincts and command (the Browns think he’s capable of playing real snaps as a rookie). And fifth-rounder Shedeur Sanders, who was far behind the other three when he came in, is working to catch up."
As of the final Tuesday of July, Flacco is on track to serve as the Browns' QB1 for their Aug. 6 joint practice with the Carolina Panthers. On the latest edition of the "Orange and Brown Talk Podcast," Browns beat reporter Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer mentioned that Pickett's "superpower" regarding the competition "is his mobility." This suggests Stefanski may keep Pickett from facing an opposing defense until after Cleveland's preseason matchup at the Panthers on Aug. 8 to ensure the 2022 first-round pick has fully recovered from his setback.
According to ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi, Stefanski told reporters on Monday he doesn't "have a timeline" for Pickett's return to practice. The Browns are expected to reevaluate the 27-year-old later this week.
Cleveland is scheduled to participate in a joint practice with the Philadelphia Eagles before the two teams meet for an exhibition contest at Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field on Aug. 16. It is, of course, far too early to guess if Pickett will even be cleared to practice by then.
In a different piece, Breer directly said that "Sanders isn’t going to start" Cleveland's regular-season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7. Barring a surprising development, it sounds like the Browns' QB1 job will be Flacco's to lose until Pickett can do more than take mental reps on practice days.
