Cleveland Browns' Shedeur Sanders Falling Behind Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel? Depth Chart Insight

This is significant as reps will come at a premium in the deepest quarterback room in the NFL. The plan pairs one rookie with one veteran (rookie Gabriel, veteran Pickett) and (rookie Sanders, veteran Flacco.) The team drills will certainly have an impact on the quarterback battle, as the Browns hope to have a clearer depth chart before training camp and preseason games begin.

The competition is wide open, meaning both rookie quarterbacks in Gabriel and Sanders could earn the starting job in Cleveland. Sanders has grabbed headlines and unprecedented attention in Cleveland already, as a fifth round draft pick with the upside of an NFL franchise quarterback.

Sanders and the Browns made it official on Monday, agreeing to terms on a four-year, $4.6 million deal. Sanders’ deal includes a $447,380 signing bonus. The deal is nearly $42 million less than what Sanders would have made at No. 2 overall. Shedeur becomes the fourth rookie draft pick to sign his deal with the Browns, leaving three additional players left.

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski is in a unique scenario with four quarterbacks vying to become Cleveland's starting quarterback for the 2025 NFL season. Five quarterbacks if you count Deshaun Watson, who is still on the team but likely out for 2025 after suffering a re-rupture of his injured Achilles.

What will the pecking order be? Will one or two quarterbacks be traded before the Browns begin their season on Sept. 7 vs. the Cincinnati Bengals?

Many analysts have weighed in. FOX Sports' Collin Cowherd's take is that Sanders is the better choice of the two rookies.

“Shedeur is 6-2, historically accurate, and I have seen him standing around normal sized people. He’s big. He’s a big 6-2,”Cowherd said on "The Herd."  “Mahomes is 6-1.5. Aaron Rodgers, you never think about his size. He’s 6-1. Big calves, big wrists. 6-3, Matt Stafford. 6-4, Jared Goff. 6-6, Joe Flacco. Eli was 6-5, Peyton was 6-5.5 or whatever he was. Dillon Gabriel is noticeably smaller and thinner than Bo Nix, and Bo Nix is not an ideal size in the NFL. He is a very, very small guy. Shedeur Sanders, he’s much bigger and much better.”

The rookies are challenging former Super Bowl MVP quarterback Joe Flacco, who has 18 years of NFL experience and Pickett, who is at the top of the depth chart for now.

With the Philadelphia Eagles in 2024, Pickett appeared in five total games, completing 59.5 percent of his passes for 291 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. At 26 years old, Pickett still has the upside of being a long-term option and says he plans on starting, via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

“That’s the plan, man. I’m not going there to hang out,” Pickett said. “I want to go play. I’m excited, been working hard for it, taking it a day at a time.”

Sanders isn't backing down from the challenge of the competition. The middle son of NFL legend and Colorado Buffaloes coach Deion Sanders, Shedeur is scrutinized for his family and the attention that comes with it.

“My job here isn’t to prove people wrong, I’m proving myself right,” Sanders said during rookie minicamp. “I fully believe it. What those people say, that’s just their opinions. I don’t truly care. They don’t really live in my mental space about that type of stuff. It really doesn’t do anything for me.”