This offseason has been far from normal for the Cleveland Browns. Unfortunately, that’s becoming the norm for the franchise. It seems as if every year the Browns do something to create drama and draw attention to themselves. This year, Cleveland did that by adding a ton of quarterbacks to the roster.
Now, with training camp over, the Browns only have three quarterbacks on the active roster, and have announced their depth chat. Joe Flacco is the starter, Dillon Gabriel is QB2, and Shedeur Sanders is third string. Typically, this is the time when all the talk about other quarterbacks stop, but things are just getting started in Cleveland.
Entering the 2025 season, there’s this weird storyline of how many quarterbacks will start for the Browns this season. Teams usually want to start one guy the entire year, but the expectation around Cleveland is that multiple guys will start throughout the year.
Everyone expects the Browns to start multiple quarterbacks throughout the season
Unfortunately, this expectation isn’t surprising. While the Browns will start the year with Joe Flacco under center, people are convinced he will eventually be replaced by Gabriel due to injury or poor play. Of course, it’d be great for Cleveland if Flacco started the entire year and led the team to a successful season, but that’s probably not likely.
Even the most optimistic Browns fans will admit the team will probably see multiple starters this year. The question is: how many? Will Flacco and both rookies start games? Will Deshaun Watson, who’s publicly pushing to get back from injury, make his way into the lineup? Will Bailey Zappe, a recent practice squad signee, find his way on the active roster and under center?
That all remains to be seen. One thing is clear: whatever happens in the quarterback room this season is unlikely to be something the franchise hasn’t seen before. Last season, the Browns started four different quarterbacks in 17 games. Two years ago, five different guys recorded a start throughout the year.
So while cycling through starters may be weird for most teams, it has unfortunately become the norm in Cleveland. If the three quarterbacks currently on the active roster are the only three QBs to start for the Browns this year, it would be a monotonous season by franchise standards.