While national NFL reporters continue to suggest that the Cleveland Browns’ 2025 Week 1 starting quarterback isn’t yet on their roster, individuals who cover the team have made it known that Cleveland acquired former Pittsburgh Steelers flop Kenny Pickett from the Philadelphia Eagles in March to give him a legitimate opportunity to win the QB1 job and jumpstart his career with the organization.
For a piece published Sunday, Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer touched upon the Browns’ belief that Pickett can become a revelation working with head coach Kevin Stefanski, similar to how Sam Darnold and Geno Smith achieved success with teams that didn’t draft them before they received lucrative contracts from their current employers this offseason.
“Pickett is 26,” Pluto wrote. “The Browns believe his career ‘has yet to be defined,’ as one top NFL source told me. The Browns look at the revival of Darnold and Smith and believe the same can happen with Pickett, especially with Stefanski’s offense, which suits the QB’s skills. Are they giving Pickett the starting job? Absolutely not. Do they think he has a chance to win it? Absolutely. We’ll see if they’re right.”
The Steelers made Pickett a first-round pick during the 2022 NFL Draft, but he lost the starting job to injury and to longtime backup Mason Rudolph during the 2023 campaign. According to Pro-Football-Reference, Pickett ended that season ranked 27th in the NFL with a 38.1 QBR and with an 81.4 passer rating. Pittsburgh traded him to Philadelphia in March 2024, and he spent the majority of this past campaign as a backup.
Cleveland’s alleged confidence in Pickett is one reason some now believe the club will not pick up veteran Kirk Cousins unless he receives his desired release from the Atlanta Falcons before the draft gets underway on April 24. The Browns are expected to grab at least one quarterback during this year’s player-selection process, but it now appears many are convinced Cleveland will pass on making Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders the draft’s second pick. #
As of Monday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Colorado wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter as the betting favorite at -130 odds to be the draft’s second choice. Penn State pass-rusher Abdul Carter was second on the list at +100 odds, followed by Sanders (+750).
Unless the Browns try to trade back into the first round to land both Hunter and Sanders, they could take a flier on an advertised project for the future later in the draft, such as Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart, Louisville’s Tyler Shough or Alabama’s Jalen Milroe. It sounds like any to-be rookie who joins the Browns had better be ready to compete with Pickett from springtime workouts through the team’s final preseason game in August.
Be the first to comment