Insider reveals who has 'slight edge' in Browns' QB competition ahead of training camp

Recent stories suggested that Kenny Pickett was "unremarkable" and didn't "pop" during the Cleveland Browns' springtime workouts as he shared a quarterback room with veteran Joe Flacco, rookie Dillon Gabriel and first-year pro Shedeur Sanders.

Nevertheless, Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer shared in an article updated on Monday morning that "Pickett still has a slight edge in terms of being No. 1 on the depth chart heading into training camp." Veteran Browns players are due to report to camp on Tuesday. 

"It might not be easy to determine where the QBs fall on the imaginary depth chart in the first two weeks of camp, because the Browns will continue 'two-spotting' or splitting the four QBs on two different fields to maximize their reps," Cabot continued. "Furthermore, Joe Flacco doesn’t need as many reps with the starters as the others, but that doesn’t mean he’s not firmly in the mix for the Week 1 start, because he is."

As of Monday morning, FanDuel Sportsbook continued to list Flacco as the betting favorite at -102 odds to emerge as Cleveland's starter for the Week 1 game versus the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7. Flacco won four of five starts to guide the 2023 Browns to the playoffs while playing under head coach Kevin Stefanski, while the other active quarterbacks on Cleveland's roster have never taken an in-game snap in Stefanski's offense. 

That said, some within the Browns may "want" Pickett to win the competition, if only because he turned 27 years old in June. Flacco will be 40 throughout the upcoming season. 

Meanwhile, Browns beat reporter Ashley Bastock hinted on a recent edition of the "Orange and Brown Talk Podcast" that the team would like to avoid playing either Sanders or Gabriel through at least the first six weeks of this season. Cleveland opens the campaign with matchups against the Bengals, Baltimore Ravens, Green Bay Packers, Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings (in London) and Pittsburgh Steelers. 

"By the time the Browns practice against the Eagles on Aug. 13 and 14, it will be easier to see which way the Browns are leaning," Cabot added about Cleveland's quarterback competition. "The QB1 in those practices has a good chance to be the Week 1 starter, although the Browns will get some good data from the second preseason game in Philly (on Aug. 16), too. Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders will likely split that game, probably in that order, and they can both gain some ground in the competition."

For what it's worth, Mike Jones of The Athletic wrote for a piece published on Monday that "it would seem that Flacco, who two years ago helped lead Cleveland to the playoffs, has the edge" to start over Pickett against Cincinnati on the first Sunday of September. Even if that is the case, it sounds like Pickett will be given every opportunity possible to win or lose the job over the next month or so.