Will Browns essentially choose Kenny Pickett over Falcons' Kirk Cousins?

Individuals such as Conor Orr of Sports Illustrated continue to insist the Cleveland Browns should and will trade for Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins at some point this offseason.

However, people who cover the Browns are convinced that head coach Kevin Stefanski and general manager Andrew Berry are prepared to feature former Pittsburgh Steelers flop Kenny Pickett as their 2025 Week 1 QB1. 

For an article published on Wednesday morning, Browns insider Tony Grossi of ESPN Cleveland/The Land on Demand echoed a previous report and said the club trading for Cousins "is not likely to happen" before or after the 2025 NFL Draft. 

"They have a very limited cash and salary cap budget for this roster spot," Grossi said about the Browns. "Cousins was attractive on a minimum NFL salary...but not at a $5M+ price. The Browns don’t want to give up a draft-pick asset for Cousins. OK, maybe a sixth- or seventh-rounder. But nothing higher. Cousins wants assurance he will be a starter. The Browns won’t give him that assurance. They made that decision when they traded for Kenny Pickett, whom the Browns consider a viable competitor for a starter’s role."

The Browns sent backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson and a 2025 fifth-round draft pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Pickett, a 2022 first-round choice who spent his first two pro seasons with the Steelers before they gave up on him. 

Pickett went 14-10 as a starter with Pittsburgh, but his final acts as a member of that club included allegedly refusing to dress as an emergency third quarterback when Mason Rudolph was starting and asking to be traded after the Steelers signed Russell Wilson in March 2024. 

Meanwhile, Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer previously reported that the Falcons want a buying team "to take on a sizable chunk" of Cousins' salary. His contract has a full no-trade clause, and he could block a move to a club not willing to name him its Week 1 starter. 

The Browns may pass on making Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders the second overall pick of this year's draft. They could, however, grab a project for the future such as Ole Miss' Jaxson Dart, Alabama's Jalen Milroe or Louisville's Tyler Shough later in the player-selection process. 

"I think Browns fans understandably are low on Pickett because of his two years with the Steelers," Grossi added. "I also think Pickett is a more mature player now, and the Browns' offense will be better-suited to his skills than whatever they were trying to do on offense in Pittsburgh in 2022 and 2023."

Cousins may be damaged goods at this stage of his career, and it sounds like people within the Browns seriously believe Pickett has the higher ceiling of the two players. Perhaps Stefanski thinks he can earn NFL Coach of the Year Award honors for the third time by helping Pickett become a legitimate starter before the first Sunday of September arrives.