Once again, the Cleveland Browns' quarterback situation has been one of the main offseason storylines, although not for great reasons. Ultimately, they'll roll with Deshaun Watson, at least to kick off the season.
But if there's something that the Browns have shown their fans, it is that whoever starts in Week 1 is unlikely to do so in Week 18. They've had at least three starting quarterbacks in three consecutive seasons, and 2026, unfortunately, might not be the exception.
That may not necessarily be a bad thing. If anything, FanSided's latest quarterback rankings show multiple avenues for improvement.
Whether the Browns will be interested in pursuing any of those obvious trade targets is a different story.
Cleveland has several potential trade targets who could provide an immediate upgrade at quarterback
Deshaun Watson isn't even Cleveland's highest-ranked quarterback on FanSided's list. Both he and Shedeur Sanders are listed in the "high-ceiling backups" tier with Sanders at No. 37 with a 5.34 score and Watson five spots behind him at 4.96. For what it's worth, Dillon Gabriel (No. 73, 3.4) and Taylen Green (No. 80, 2.66) are both listed on the "marginal roster QBs" tier.
There's no point in stating the obvious and delivering yet another hot take about the Browns' quarterback room. It's bad, and we all know it.
Instead, let's focus on what they can do to get out of this mess and find a bridge quarterback for the second half of this season.
Three former Browns are ranked ahead of Cleveland's current quarterbacks. Jacoby Brissett, Joe Flacco, and Jameis Winston would all be better options than what the team currently has, though it's hard to envision the first two returning to Berea.
Winston, however, makes perfect sense.
Winston just signed a two-year contract extension with the Giants, but he played in Todd Monken's offense with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. There would be some mistakes and wild plays, but he'd make this team must-watch television, especially with its new set of playmakers.
If the Browns don't want to turn back to familiar faces, then there are other potential targets like Tua Tagovailoa, Michael Penix Jr., and Geno Smith.
Granted, it's highly unlikely that the Browns will be in the market for an external quarterback this season. If anything, they might look to offload Gabriel or Green prior to the trade deadline.
There's a case to be made for this approach, though.
The Browns should still have a stout defense, and their young playmakers on offense are promising. Maybe they lose one too many close games because of subpar quarterback play, but show enough promise to make the front office feel comfortable about putting yet another Band-Aid on the position with a bridge guy before finding their quarterback of the future in 2027.
This team made the playoffs with Joe Flacco at quarterback and not much more to work with on offense. It might be just wishful thinking, but maybe the Browns can still give the fans what they want in 2026.
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