Everyone expects at least one, or both, of the Cleveland Browns’ rookie quarterbacks to see the field at some point in the 2025 season. With Cleveland not expected to be competitive, it makes sense for the franchise to see what they have in the young guys before entering the 2026 offseason with two first-round picks. While Shedeur Sanders and/or Dillon Gabriel are expected to play at some point, there’s very little belief that one of the two rookies will start in Week 1.
Throghout the seemingly never-ending conversations about Cleveland’s quarterback competition, a common sentiment is that unless one of the rookies play lights out in training camp and the preseason, they should start the season on the bench. That will give them more time to develop before eventually making their debut. Additionally, analysts have frequently pointed out how the Browns have one of the toughest starts to the season in the league, so it wouldn’t make sense to throw a rookie QB into the fire like that.
There is definitely still value in sitting and developing, especially at the quarterback position. However, the notion that Cleveland’s opening schedule is really tough for a rookie quarterback is being a bit overstated. The Browns do start their season with a run of good teams, but the teams being good does not mean their defenses are challenging to go against.
Browns will start the 2025 season against good teams, not good defenses
A quick glance at Cleveland’s first six games and it definitely looks like a gauntlet. The Browns will play four playoff teams, and the two non-playoff teams are the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers. With the other four teams being the Baltimore Ravens, Green Bay Packers, Detroit Lions, and Minnesota Vikings, Cleveland will start the year against six teams that could end up in the postseason next year.
That lineup makes it understandable why some are predicting the Browns will start 0-6, and why it won’t be wise to subject a rookie quarterback to that. However, a closer look reveals that these defenses aren’t as scary as their teams are. While each season is it’s own entity, the past year is the only data point until games are played in a new season, and last season says the defenses of these teams aren’t that good.
Starting in Week 1 with the Cincinnati Bengals, it’s well known they are only scary because of their explosive offensive trio. The Bengals defense had a bottom-10 unit last year, allowing 25.5 points per game, and they don’t even want to pay the one bright spot of the defense.
Moving on to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2. They have elite defensive players at every level and were an actual top-10 unit last season. However, Baltimore was consistently let down by its 31st-ranked passing defense, allowing 244.1 yards a game.
The 0.1 is all that separated Baltimore and the Lions, who had the 30th-ranked passing defense, giving up 244 passing yards a game. That’s who Cleveland plays in Week 4. The Browns also play Detroit’s NFC North mates in Week 3 (Packers) and Week 5 (Vikings). Minnesota’s defense was just average last season and Green Bay’s was inconsistent.
Of course, all of this could change this season, but this is the same information used to called these teams tough opponents. It’s clear the defenses weren’t all that tough. Since that’s the case, protecting a rookie quarterback from elite teams shouldn’t really be a factor for the Browns. If Cleveland has a young quarterback that appears ready to start, the team should start him.