Joe Flacco is a starting quarterback again. The Cleveland Browns announced Monday that Flacco, a 40-year-old veteran, will be the team’s QB1.
To earn the starting role, Flacco had to beat out four other competitors: Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, Shedeur Sanders and the recently-acquired Tyler Huntley.
Flacco has continually held the edge in the race to be named QB1. He has been consistently atop the unofficial depth charts throughout the preseason, followed by Pickett at QB2 and then Gabriel, Sanders, Huntley and the injured Deshaun Watson all listed at QB3. Pickett, who appeared poised to compete with Flacco for the starting job, suffered a hamstring injury in camp, while Sanders suffered an oblique injury that held him out of Week 2 of the preseason.
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Of the Browns' QB room, Flacco and Pickett are the only two who have yet to play in the preseason. Sanders made his NFL debut with a solid showing in the first game against the Carolina Panthers, while Gabriel started in Saturday's win over the Philadelphia Eagles. Huntley played in both games as a backup.
On Sunday, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said that the team would be naming its starter ahead of the final preseason game this weekend, in order to treat the game as a dress rehearsal for the regular season. As a result, Flacco will make his preseason debut with Cleveland as the Browns take on the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday.
Flacco was the Baltimore Ravens’ starting quarterback for 11 seasons, notably winning a Super Bowl with the team in the 2012 season. He has bounced between four different teams for the past few seasons. Flacco’s last stint with Cleveland, in 2023, ended with the veteran winning Comeback Player of the Year. Flacco signed with the Browns late in the season to replace an injured Watson and ended up leading the team to the playoffs.
Having previously worked with the Browns, Flacco showed more promise as a Week 1 starter, with his experience and familiarity with the system serving as a leg up over the younger Pickett.
How has the Browns’ quarterback race shaken out since the start of training camp?
Cleveland has had one of the most competitive quarterback races in the NFL this year, with the Browns holding a large number of very different QB options.
At this point in the preseason, the Browns have six quarterbacks under contract: Flacco, Pickett, Gabriel, Sanders, Huntley and Watson, who is out again after tearing his Achilles twice last year. The seemingly always-injured Watson (who Browns owner Jimmy Haslam recently admitted was a mistake to trade for) was not expected to be a part of the quarterback race.
That left the remaining five. Early in training camp, Flacco and Pickett emerged as clear frontrunners for the job, taking the most first-team snaps and overall showing the most promise as starters.
Pickett, a fourth-year player suffered a hamstring injury before returning to training camp a week later. With Pickett out, Flacco, the most experienced of the group, took control of the QB1 spot prior to the first preseason game.
In the Browns' first unofficial depth chart prior to the first preseason game, Flacco was listed as QB1, with Pickett as QB2 after returning from injury. Rookies Gabriel and Sanders were listed as third- and fourth-string, respectively.
The two rookies have been largely working with backups throughout the start of training camp, with Sanders even working with members of the equipment team. Gabriel has also been limited in practice due to his own hamstring injury, though he still held in front of Sanders in the initial review.
And Huntley, a career backup who spent some time with the Browns last season, largely seems to be a last-second addition in case either Gabriel or Pickett’s injuries extend longer than hoped. It’s unclear whether he will make it to the full roster, especially considering the number of quarterbacks that Cleveland is holding.
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