Cleveland Browns to Sign QB Bailey Zappe

According to a report from Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, the Cleveland Browns are preparing to sign quarterback Bailey Zappe from the practice squad of the Kansas City Chiefs.

Deshaun Watson is out for the season with a ruptured Achilles’ tendon. He’s preparing to have surgery this week and the Browns will place him on injured reserve. The Browns will be using that open roster spot to bring in a third quarterback. By signing Zappe from another team’s practice squad, they must carry him on the active roster for a minimum of three regular season games.

Zappe is a 25-year old quarterback with 14 games of NFL experience, eight starts with the New England Patriots. The four games Zappe played in 2022 were significantly better than 2023. A small sample, Zappe completed 70.7 percent of his passes, averaging 8.5 yards per attempt. In 2023, his completion percentage dropped to 59.9 and he only averaged 6 yards per attempt. He went from five touchdowns and three interceptions to six touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Zappe didn’t play well in 2023, but the supporting cast around him worsened. The overall deterioration of the Patriots led to replacing Bill Belichick as head coach with his long-time assistant Jerod Mayo. The Patriots signed Jacoby Brissett as a free agent and then selected Drake Maye with the third overall pick of this year’s draft. Zappe was released after training camp this year and signed with the practice squad of the Chiefs.

It’s unclear how the Browns will proceed at the quarterback situation after this season, but Zappe represents an opportunity to get a look at a quarterback who might have a chance to be part of next year’s plan. Whether they want to draft a top quarterback in the upcoming class or somewhere in the mid to late rounds, the Browns will looking for a veteran to join them presumably along with Dorian Thompson-Robinson. Zappe gets to be back on an active roster and audition for a larger role next year, be it with the Browns or someone else.

The Browns could release Zappe after the three games and bring in another quarterback to evaluate. Short of injury, the Browns will complete the remainder of the season with Jameis Winston and Dorian Thompson-Robinson with Zappe or anyone else trying to prove their worth on the practice field as well as in meetings.

The Browns wanted to ensure they had a third quarterback, but this affords them an opportunity to see if there’s something with a young quarterback who has played a decent number of NFL games.

The Browns will host the Baltimore Ravens this week and have not yet named who will be their quarterback. DTR was the backup against the Cincinnati Bengals, but suffered a finger injury which may prompt the Browns to go to Winston this week.

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