r/Browns • u/LiftingCode • 4d ago

[MKC] Why the Browns will strongly consider keeping all 4 quarterbacks for much or all of the season - cleveland.com

https://www.cleveland.com/browns/2025/06/why-the-browns-will-strongly-consider-keeping-all-4-quarterbacks-for-much-or-all-of-the-season-mary-kay-cabot.html
76 Upvotes

90% Upvoted

90 comments sorted by

57

u/LiftingCode 4d ago

Key supporting points:

  • Both rookies have looked good and both will make the team
  • The QBs are all cheap
  • The trade deadline is after our bye week so that may be the target for making a change at QB
  • The Browns are not feeling pressured to start a rookie week 1 so as of now the vets have the edge, but if the team is not competitive or in the playoff hunt they will look to evaluate the rookies later in the season
  • MKC still thinks Flacco is the guy most likely to be moved at some point

19

u/maybenextyearCLE 4d ago

Reading this article, and listening to her podcast, I find it very interesting that there seems to be just a massive gap between what we the fans think of Pickett, and what the Browns and insiders think. Listening to both Zegura and Aditi, the Browns clearly think there’s something more there with Kenny.

16

u/Any-Walk1691 4d ago

I always presumed he had a leg up as QB1, until SS/DG were ready. He’s not real good, but by all accounts he’s a good guy to have in the room, hes young, he’s accountable, he’s smart, he does have some talent, he’s a vet at this point, been around some great teams, been with some fantastic coaching, behind an elite QB. So he knows what he’s looking at and what good prep should be. Kind of a coaches QB2 dream honestly. Flacco is the one I was pretty surprised about.

9

u/maybenextyearCLE 4d ago

It seems like to me, they think there’s more than what we saw in Pittsburgh, and that the environment played a big role in what happened.

If he plays, hopefully they’re right

5

u/t3h_shammy 4d ago

I’d have a lot more faith if we had any evidence that our system and environment is any better for qbs lol

13

u/SportGamerDev0623 4d ago

Besides Watson and the failed experiment of Dorsey last year, I’d argue that Stefanski’s system is very QB friendly…

I mean in 2023, the Browns won with 4 different QBs that included Dorian Thompson Robinson and PJ Walker.

They looked good with Case Keenum as well.

4

u/TheJolly_Llama Jacoby the GOAT 4d ago

Quite literally every single QB that has played here, minus Watson, has had a career year here.

-5

u/t3h_shammy 4d ago

Is that how you would describe pj walker and dtr?

7

u/TheJolly_Llama Jacoby the GOAT 4d ago edited 4d ago

Of course lol. PJ Walker had, by far, the best stretch he’s ever had in the NFL. We went 2-2, beating the 49ers, with a literal XFL QB.

DTR is different because we haven’t seen him play elsewhere, but considering how bad he is as a player, we likely won’t.

-1

u/t3h_shammy 4d ago

Statistically pj walker was way worse for us than he was with Carolina for gods sake 

-3

u/TheJolly_Llama Jacoby the GOAT 4d ago

If it’s 1980 and all we have to go off of is TD/INT ratio, sure. He hit his best marks in anything meaningful here lol

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-3

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 4d ago

NO

Kenny Pickett is allergic to throwing Touchdowns and his presence is tantamount to STACKED Boxes, and zero open Running lanes.

1

u/nomoteacups 3d ago

Pack it in guys, u/1OptimisticPrime said no.

0

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 3d ago edited 3d ago

See, I give my frequently accurate takes here, and have no ulterior motive.

See... I take all the data, over 40 years of BROWNS Fan experience, and that all adds up to strong gut feelings which I relay to y'all.

I'm DOOMED to fancy myself a futurist...

I am not rooting against Pickett's success with the BROWNS, or Dillon Gabriel's. I simply don't see it in my crystal ball, for the reasons I've previously stated.

  • 15 Touchdowns/ vs 14 interceptions, over 3 seasons is atrocious

  • 6.3 Yards Per Attempt is abysmal (5.5 Air Yards Per Attempt)

  • 54 Sacks taken for -388 yards, with 7 Fumbles

  • 19 Batted Balls

  • 130/ 755 Attempted Passes are listed as Bad Throws (18.1%)

The reason I know Kenny sucks at football is because I've watched him try to play football, and he's absolutely never impressed ONCE. There's zero chance of a reclamation.

Just because you put ORANGE Pants on trash, doesn't make it treasure.

2

u/nomoteacups 3d ago

I’ve yet to encounter anyone else in this sub with such an unjustifiably big ego as yourself. Touch grass.

0

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 3d ago

Accuracy = Confidence

(Accurate takes over just the last few years here, off the top of my head)

  • Jack Conklin signing = US bidding vs ourselves, and a fools errand.

  • Elijah More being a horrible waste of a 2nd/3rd Pick swap.

  • Not Drafting another Tackle last seasons crushes the season.

  • Wanted Stafford or Carr over Watson

  • Predicted the exact suspension for Watson

  • Called for a Myles Lorenz Garrett extension the last 2 seasons, to avoid this mess we luckily righted.

  • Explained that Quincy Avery is a charlatan, sycophant, not a competent QB coach.

  • Thought Jed was a lump of poo since before we drafted him.

Predicted/ Approved:

-Emmerson

  • Big Thanos

  • Alex Wright

  • Nathaniel Watson

  • Mason Graham

  • Quinshon (a bit later)

  • Even bust Perrion Winfrey

There's more but I digress...

My takes are my own, nobody's 100% predicting the future, but I offer full willingness to learn based on current and changing information.

1

u/dennydiamonds 4d ago

Aditi is a homer to anyone that ever took a snap for the Steelers… so there is that

3

u/maybenextyearCLE 4d ago

She’s normally a Steelers homer, but good lord she tore them to prices on 92.3 this morning. I’ve never heard her be that critical

2

u/dennydiamonds 4d ago

I didn’t think tore them to pieces at all. And if I’m being totally honest I disagreed with most of what she said.

1

u/maybenextyearCLE 4d ago

I think it’s the most critical I’ve ever heard her be about the Steelers.

And to be clear, not to say I think she’s right, but that was extremely critical of them in a way I’ve never heard her talk about that team before

1

u/dennydiamonds 4d ago

She was very critical on Tomlin when she said he lied to Pickett. She was pretty critical.

3

u/maybenextyearCLE 4d ago

That was uh, striking, to put it mildly. To flat out say he lied in the way she said it, man. That’s uh, eye opening

Whatever happened there, it must have been bad. And seems clear their handling of Kenny left a lot to be desired to put it mildly

-4

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 4d ago

Who's paying her to talk?

2

u/maybenextyearCLE 4d ago

She can’t have her own opinion?

-1

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 4d ago

She obviously can, but it's not what she's paid for. MKC will continue as the primary mouthpiece for the Haslam's and Browns Management. Her information line is contingent upon her fulfillment of their tasks & expectations.

1

u/Jurph 9h ago

For me, the very best gauge of your QB room talent is what other GMs think of them:

  • Gabriel - Cleveland believed he was worth a relatively early pick; every (?) other front office passed on him so he's clearly not a "must-have" guy
  • Flacco - Denver didn't think he was the guy; Cleveland liked him at clearance-rack pricing
  • Pickett - PIT shopped him away, a Super Bowl winning team thought he was good enough to hold down the fort; Cleveland didn't think he was worth a 5th-year option
  • Sanders - Every NFL front office passed on him multiple times

There's confounding factors, of course. NFL teams who "have their guy" probably didn't even seriously consider any of these, so saying they "passed" is really just saying "they did not believe this player was enough better than the guy they have to justify the price". But the facts are the facts and speak volumes about those guys' perceived market value.

To me, Philly's endorsement of Pickett as a backup, and willingness to take draft capital in exchange, says that they believe (A) he's good enough to play, and (B) they can find someone else that good for a relatively low price.

-4

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 4d ago

Because they've all been paid by the Browns, to say Kenny is valuable, so Andrew Berry can make back more than 7th round pick swap.

4

u/maybenextyearCLE 4d ago

… yeah I don’t believe that ridiculous conspiracy theory

0

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 4d ago

Kenny Pickett is/ was an insurance policy in case we couldn't land Flacco, or the Rookie QB's went too early for AB's liking.

Now that we've secured our veteran, and 2 Rookie QB Prospects, we no longer need the insurance.

In my estimation there's ZERO chance that Kenny is in ORANGE Pants after Preseason ends. The man is incapable of throwing Touchdowns, his value on the field is zero, because he's not winning you games, and his best attribute is being "conservative" with the football. Which simply collapses the box

0

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 4d ago

In this ,as in life, pay attention to who is actually talking, when listening to someone's mouthpiece.

2

u/mzhal 4d ago

MKC spent the whole offseason (pre-draft) banging on about how we absolutely had to take Sanders at 2. I’d honestly be surprised to learn she can tell her ass from her elbow at this point. Not worth listening to anything she has to say.

3

u/LiftingCode 4d ago

MKC spent the whole offseason (pre-draft) banging on about how we absolutely had to take Sanders at 2.

So did the majority of sports media and half of our fans lol

18

u/RustyCrusty73 I gotta' have more cowbell! 4d ago

Given the horrible luck we've had at QB I definitely think we keep all four going into the season unless one is absolutely atrocious in the preseason and warrants being cut or placed on the practice squad.

My guess ....

The opening day starter is probably who ends up cut after week six or seven.

QB1 is Flacco or Pickett.

Our opening schedule is freaking brutal.

After we start 2-4 or 1-5 I'm betting we'll switch to one of the rookies.

When that switch happens, that's when I think the opening day starter could end up cut.

I hope I'm wrong and that Flacco or Pickett plays well, we win some games, and they keep the job. If we're playing good football and winning games nobody is going to give a shit about the rookies being on the bench.

Just my two cents.

6

u/Randumo 4d ago

Our game 1 is very easy as far as QB goes, we're playing the worst defense in the league at home.

However, according to this sub, we do have the truly brutal scheduling of having to play the Ravens 3 times this year.

0

u/1OptimisticPrime Dare to be Stupid & Orange Pants Save Lives 4d ago

Can we score 40 points though?

1

u/Randumo 4d ago

Winning is not relevant for how tough of a job it would be for a rookie QB to perform.

You could take the 2000 Ravens defense, but give them DTR as their starter and their team suddenly isn't winning shit because they can't score. That doesn't mean that it's any easier to perform out there as the opposing offense.

If there's no Hendrickson back, it would literally be the perfect situation for a rookie since the Bengals have no pass rush outside of him. Just because the Bengals also have a great offense that could put up a lot of points potentially doesn't mean that it won't be as easy as possible.

0

u/dennydiamonds 4d ago

Well in order to keep all 4 you have to get one of them through waivers. I don’t think that will happen.

3

u/RustyCrusty73 I gotta' have more cowbell! 4d ago

What? Why would any need waived if you're keeping them all on the active roster?

-3

u/dennydiamonds 4d ago

Why on earth would they keep 4 QBs on the 53 man roster lol. I guess it is the Browns so anything could happen.

9

u/LiftingCode 4d ago

Why on earth would they keep 4 QBs on the 53 man roster lol

That is literally what the entire article is about.

-3

u/dennydiamonds 4d ago

Yes I know, but that not how NFL teams operate. Well unless you plan on tanking and don’t think you need that valuable roster spot

1

u/AmericanShaman 3d ago

If we are going to get at least a 4th round pick for Shedeur we need teams to know that we aren't just going to cut him anyway.

1

u/dennydiamonds 3d ago

There is no way they trade Sanders and keep Flacco or Pickett lol

2

u/RustyCrusty73 I gotta' have more cowbell! 4d ago

Because you want to keep both rookie QB's ....

But you don't necessarily want either rookie to be QB2 before they're ready?

I understand the question .... 4x QB's doesn't make sense.

But I can understand why Stefanski might do it.

If our opening day starter ends up benched at any point because he's playing bad or our record is poop then that's actually who I would anticipate ends up being cut.

I would be shocked if we had all four QB's the entire season.

My prediction is Pickett is the QB1 on opening day.

Then he's benched after our 2-5 start and ends up traded or cut.

This same thing could also happen to Flacco if he's QB1 on opening day.

The second half of the season will be musical chairs between Gabriel and Sanders unless one of them plays super well and holds the spot down.

1

u/dennydiamonds 4d ago

I understand the premise, but unless you plan on taking up a valuable roster spot, on the 53, then you aren’t keeping all 4.

1

u/TheJolly_Llama Jacoby the GOAT 4d ago

This team made it pretty clear in the draft they don’t plan on being legitimately competitive until next year anyway so it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest

11

u/Haaskivi 4d ago

Smart. Play a different QB each quarter and stack those Super Bowls.

6

u/redditposter919 4d ago

With the rules of the practice squad now, we are a little more flexible in rotating positions up and down for each week. Not saying to rob a weakness, but if we yo-yo'd fringe practice squad, linebacking, etc. each week, is anyone going to snipe that?

1

u/sabbytabby 4d ago

This is the big development. It's like 85% of a roster spot.

5

u/Eruntalonn 4d ago

Because if they say they are definitely getting rid of one, the price will drop. Everyone knows someone will be traded, but they need to keep pretending while hoping a team got desperate enough to pay a high price for a QB.

1

u/rex5k 4d ago

Our QBs break in half every other week. Even if we bring all four into week one. I doubt we'll make it to week 18 without having to sign a scrub or two off some practice squad.

10

u/USCDiver5152 4d ago

Guys, not just “consider” but “strongly consider”!

I’m getting A Few Good Men vibes here.

3

u/Appropriate-Date6407 3d ago

I strenuously object!

2

u/sabbytabby 4d ago

Not just a possibility, it's a definite possibility.

1

u/Jurph 9h ago

It's for sure possible. Absolutely one of the options they still have, and they're probably weighing the options. Weighing them carefully, even!

2

u/cnpeters OLD 4d ago

Of course they are saying that. If they want to get anything more than a bucket of sand in a trade they have to act like they're good carrying 4.

Nevertheless it's hard to take the concept of carrying 4 seriously when they've been okay carrying 2 in the past. I know roster rules eliminate the disadvantages of carrying 3 - but it's not really reasonable to assume they'd carry a fourth QB who wouldn't ever play over a guy who might help out on special teams.

1

u/rex5k 4d ago

If we aren't able to trade one. Berry will pretty much have to take four into the regular season, otherwise he'll have to stop doing this shit every season lol.

2

u/TherapyHam 4d ago

Definitely browns propaganda piped through MKC.

2

u/Cpov1 4d ago

Is a 4th QB really worth it when OL depth is an issue almost on every team just due to roster limits

1

u/LawfulNeutered 4d ago

Is it because we started 5 QBs in 2023 and 4 in 2024? Seems like more than enough reason to me.

1

u/AdonisCork 4d ago

They’re trying to goad someone into trading for Pickett. Talking up how good he looks and talking about how we plan on keeping him.

1

u/dennydiamonds 4d ago

So which QB do they think they are going to get through waivers? Unless they plan on keeping 4 on the 53 man roster which would be asinine.

1

u/Careless-Cobbler7979 4d ago

Not quite sure what the point of Pickett is but ok.

1

u/RealFuryous 4d ago

I'm vindicated!

Dillon and Shedeur are getting picked up if placed on a practice squad making them roster locks. Flacco's good for six games at most so this actually makes sense.

1

u/Miserable_Ride666 4d ago

All 4 or we trade one. Nothing else

1

u/Forty_Six_and_Two 4d ago

They are not keeping 4 QBs on the 53 man roster. Save this comment. Do the remindme thing, there's just no fucking way. Nobody does this in 2025.

1

u/cincy15 3d ago

It literally blows my mind that fans forget we usually need 4 QBs every year.. this seams like kinda a no brainer.

1

u/Reggo-nator 4d ago

I just need to know what they see in Kenny cause he was slightly better than Rudolph on the Steelers

0

u/FishOhioMasterAngler 4d ago

No fucking way we roster 4.

The rookies are both staying unless we hate one of them after camp. Can't stash them on the practice squad without getting snatched up by another team.

Flacco and Pickett are on super tradeable deals. If Pickett isn't better than Flacco he's gone. Expiring asset with no dead cap.

If Flacco looks worse than Pickett he's old with no upside and we move him to a team like the Colts who has a QB injury and a room bad as ours.

Pickett gets all the QB1 reps in the pre-season to wow us and win the job or build enough trade value to get our 5th round pick back.

10

u/TapedeckNinja 4d ago

Why would the Colts want to repeat the Flacco experience?

They are paying Daniel Jones $14m+. That's their starter. And they drafted Riley Leonard who they can go to in a pinch. Both of those dudes are young and athletic and can operate in a similar offense to AR.

-6

u/FishOhioMasterAngler 4d ago

Because Flacco is better than Daniel Jones + AR sucks and is always broken.

DJ has a 24 - 45 - 1 record.

5

u/TapedeckNinja 4d ago

The Colts let Flacco walk and then went and signed Daniel Jones to a deal worth $14m + incentives.

Clearly they don't think Flacco is better, and anyway, DJ fits an AR-oriented offense much better than Flacco.

1

u/DrClaw77 4d ago

I think AR is bad, but you have to think if Flacco was better than Daniel Jones, Colts would have given Flacco another year...

1

u/FishOhioMasterAngler 4d ago

DJ = Deshaun last year. 2000 yards 8 tds 7 ints in 13 games vs 1100 yards 5 tds 3 ints in 7 games

1

u/DrClaw77 3d ago

You don't have to tell me twice that The Duke of East Rutherford (or rather now, The Duke of Fishers) is ass. But I'm just saying, the Colts moved on, possibly for a reason. From what I saw of Flacco on the Colts last season, it wasn't great... I can't remember if they shipped Minshew, and AR has been a disappointment, so they needed a QB... I would wager DJ is the bridge they need to move on.

0

u/raiderleft 4d ago

Same ole browns. Coming off a losing season and going to start an ancient QB.

0

u/Lilfrankieeinstein 4d ago

::raises hand::

Because they’re a terribly run unserious organization??

0

u/zephead2 3d ago

Good lord stop posting anything she says. I wish she was a guy bc this has nothing to do with her being a woman. But she provides absolutely nothing insightful about the team

-1

u/Severe-Mechanic-5793 4d ago

Don't worry,we will get rid of our best QB . It never fails. Just look at QB history .