One of the NFL’s most closely watched training camp competitions will soon have a winner.

Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said on Sunday (via Chris Easterling of the Akron Beacon Journal) that a decision on the team’s starting quarterback would come “sooner rather than later.” He also offered “the next couple of days” as a rough timeline on two occasions.

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The Browns’ quarterback competition has long appeared to be a two-man race between veterans Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett. Pickett has been sidelined since late July with a hamstring injury, allowing Flacco to take virtually all of the first-team reps in practice. The 18-year veteran seems to have a commanding lead at this point.

Both of the team’s rookies – third-rounder Dillon Gabriel and fifth-rounder Shedeur Sanders – had successful preseason debuts but don’t seem any closer to the starting gig. Both have missed time due to injury this preseason – a recurring theme for the Browns quarterback room – putting them even further behind in the race as they adjust to a new offense at a higher level of competition.

Gabriel recovered from his hamstring injury to start against the Eagles on Saturday, while Sanders performed well against the Panthers on August 8 before suffering an oblique injury earlier this week. The Browns are hopeful Sanders can return for their third preseason game.

Stefanski will need to name a backup quarterback as well. Pickett would be the obvious choice, but if his absence extends into the regular season, one of the rookies will get the QB2 role initially. Gabriel has taken 14 series with the first-team offense in recent weeks, per Easterling, trailing only Flacco (50 first-team series). That would appear to give the former Oregon standout a slight edge, but Sanders can make a push if he gets back on the field for the Browns’ last preseason game next Saturday.

Throughout the offseason, Browns general manager Andrew Berry has publicly stated a willingness to carry four healthy quarterbacks on the regular season roster. As the cutdown deadline looms, it appears Cleveland will indeed take that route.

Rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders are safe with respect to making the team’s 53-man roster, although it was recently learned Gabriel was the subject of trade interest immediately after he was drafted. The Oregon product has been ahead of Sanders through the offseason, but he – like Kenny Pickett – has missed time during camp due to a hamstring issue.

As a result of Pickett’s missed time and the inexperience of the Browns’ other options, cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot writes Joe Flacco represents the top candidate to begin the season as QB1. It would certainly come as no surprise if the 40-year-old handled starting duties at least early in his second stint with the team, especially with Pickett on the mend. Sanders is dealing with an oblique strain, meanwhile, making it unlikely he suits up for Cleveland’s second preseason contest.

However snaps are handled over the coming weeks, Cabot notes each member of the Flacco-Pickett-Gabriel-Sanders quartet can be expected to survive roster cuts. Deshaun Watson remains in the organization, of course, but as he recovers from a second Achilles tear he is highly unlikely to play in 2025. That leaves recent signing Tyler Huntley in the fold for now, although his return to Cleveland came about in the wake of other injuries under center.

Huntley did not make it to Cleveland’s Week 1 roster during his first stint with the team, and that will no doubt be the case once again in 2025. Even if he is released shortly, however, the Browns’ QB room is set to remain crowded into the fall.

Taking the rare step of drafting multiple quarterbacks in the same class, the Browns are in the latter stages of one of the more unusual competitions at the position in modern NFL history. As it stands, Joe Flacco is leading the way.

Even that is rather interesting, seeing as the former Super Bowl MVP is 40 and has not started a season opener as a non-injury fill-in (as he was with the 2022 Jets) since beginning the 2019 season as the Broncos’ starter. Flacco is on track to join Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Vinny Testaverde (Cowboys), Warren Moon (Seahawks), Johnny Unitas (Chargers) and Charlie Conerly (Giants) as QBs to open a season as a starting quarterback at 40 or older. Flacco’s age certainly points to his starter stint not lasting too long, shifting focus to the team’s two rookies.

Both Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders‘ rookie contracts run through 2028. The Browns are likely to have both players on their depth chart, barring an IR stay for one of them, behind Flacco to open the season. Gabriel’s future as a backup has also become a talking point, because teams were certainly surprised the Browns traded up for Sanders two rounds after selecting Gabriel. To that point, SI.com’s Albert Breer confirms a report from The Athletic’s Michael Silver that stated the Browns received trade offers for Gabriel soon after trading up for Sanders.

Although post-pick trades can happen in the NFL — as the famous Eli Manning–Philip Rivers swap revealed 21 years ago — those sequences are traditionally confined to the NBA draft. The Browns have rebuffed QB trade inquiries at multiple stops this offseason, as reports in May and June indicated Cleveland was standing pat with its passer room. Those inquiries will likely resurface soon, with this month profiling as a trade window due to the roster crunch that comes each year as teams frantically go from 90 to 53 players.

The Gabriel interest came about from the six-year college QB impressing teams during pre-draft interviews, Breer adds; clubs saw the former Oregon, Central Florida and Oklahoma passer’s floor as that of a long-term backup. It would be interesting to learn what draft capital the Gabriel trade offers featured. Teams clearly saw more in Gabriel, with most draft observers viewing the undersized option as being overdrafted at No. 94. His pre-draft profile differs starkly from Sanders’. The latter entered the process with steady first-round buzz saw his stock crater thanks to a strange interview approach that alienated many teams.

Sanders and Gabriel have each missed time due to injury in training camp. Gabriel has returned to team drills after a hamstring issue sidelined him during Cleveland’s preseason opener, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter notes, but the Browns announced Sanders suffered an oblique injury Wednesday and missed the rest of a joint practice with the Eagles. It is an oblique strain for Sanders, cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot notes. He is not expected to play in the Browns’ second preseason contest.

Sanders impressed when given a preseason start, thanks to the team resting Flacco and not having Gabriel or Kenny Pickett available, but his next chance to play will come in the Browns’ preseason finale next week. Pickett has not returned to 11-on-11 work, The Athletic’s Zac Jackson adds, noting Flacco remains in the driver’s seat to start in Week 1.

Pickett has thrown seven-on-seven reps since his injury, however. Gabriel’s return could point him to a start in Philly, per Jackson, who adds Sanders has generally outplayed his 5-foot-11 teammate during camp. The Browns, though, drafted Gabriel first. How these two coexist amid a situation that could remain awkward into the season will be interesting, as Flacco making it through 17 games as the starter will be unlikely.

The Browns added intrigue to their unsettled quarterback room during the draft by respectively selecting Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders in the third and fifth rounds. Those two will be joined in training camp by veteran Joe Flacco and trade acquisition Kenny Pickett.

The latter has appeared to be in the lead for the starting gig on more than one occasion so far. Pickett – a Steelers first-rounder in 2022 – did not develop as hoped in Pittsburgh and was dealt to the Eagles last year. After a single campaign as Jalen Hurts‘ backup, the 27-year-old was acquired by the Browns as an option capable of handling QB1 duties.

To no surprise, Cleveland declined Pickett’s fifth-year option this spring. As a result, he is a pending 2026 free agent. Pickett’s market value will depend greatly on how he performs with the Browns, and keeping the starter’s role throughout the season would be key in helping his stock. Both Gabriel and Sanders loom as potential replacements in the lineup, however, and Flacco is certainly a strong candidate to open the year atop the depth chart.

Indeed, NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe notes Flacco may now be considered the favorite entering training camp (video link). In 2023, a midseason Flacco signing proved to be highly beneficial for Cleveland. The former Super Bowl MVP took on starting duties and helped lead the Browns to the postseason. Flacco, 40, returned via free agency after a one-and-done season with the Colts. He is the only signal-caller with a history in head coach Kevin Stefanski‘s scheme, something which will no doubt play a role in determining the team’s starter early on.

Both Gabriel and Sanders are under team control for the next four years, meaning they should be expected to remain on the roster once summer cutdowns take place. Wolfe confirms a trade involving either rookie should not be expected. That could leave the Browns in position to carry all four quarterbacks on their active roster, something general manager Andrew Berry recently expressed a willingness for. A more realistic scenario, though, remains either Pickett or Flacco being traded ahead of Week 1 (provided the Browns’ other passers remain healthy, of course).

As a result, the performances between Cleveland’s veteran quarterbacks will be worth watching closely this summer. The question of which signal-caller sees the first start in 2025 (presumably the winner of the Flacco-Pickett contest) will be key in determining which makes the most total starts this season. It will be interesting to see how first-team reps continue to be split once padded practices begin as the Browns continue their evaluation process.