Ryan Fitzpatrick 'knows' Browns are excited about this quarterback

During an appearance on Thursday's edition of NFL Network's "Good Morning Football" program, retired quarterback and current "Thursday Night Football" analyst Ryan Fitzpatrick echoed others and said he believes veteran Joe Flacco will enter the upcoming season as the Cleveland Browns' starting signal-caller over Kenny Pickett, rookie Dillon Gabriel and first-year pro Shedeur Sanders. 

Per Brigid Kennedy of Sports Illustrated, Fitzpatrick also suggested he has some inside information regarding how Cleveland coaches view the two 2025 draft picks who are part of the club's four-way quarterback competition. 

"I know they're excited about Gabriel," Fitzpatrick said about the Browns. "We could see him inserted into the lineup, say, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9 if they've lost a few games. As a guy that's been a bridge quarterback in his career...you look at the bye week and that's about the time you get replaced."

The Browns' 2025 bye arrives following their Week 8 game at the New England Patriots on Oct. 26. Cleveland theoretically could use the break to get Gabriel ready to play at the New York Jets on Nov. 9. 

Many analysts projected in April that Gabriel would be a third-day selection before the Browns selected him in the draft's third round. Meanwhile, Sanders' handling of the predraft process allegedly caused the highly rated prospect to still be on the board when Cleveland traded up to select him with choice No. 144. 

FanDuel Sportsbook has repeatedly listed Gabriel (+500) and Sanders (+870) beneath Flacco (-102) and Pickett (+200) in betting odds regarding who will start the Browns' regular-season opener at the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7. On Tuesday, Browns reporter Zac Jackson of The Athletic mentioned that he would "be stunned if either rookie can actually win the job in camp." 

As for Flacco, he famously won four of five starts to guide the 2023 Browns to the playoffs while playing under head coach Kevin Stefanski. Fitzpatrick noted that Flacco's history with Stefanski is one reason the 40-year-old is penciled in as Cleveland's QB1. 

"He's a guy that will bring calm," Fitzpatrick said while speaking about a Browns team that's coming off a disastrous 3-14 season. "He's a guy that's gonna be able to get them off on the right foot."

If nothing else, it seems to outsiders that people within the Browns want it known that Sanders ended springtime workouts as the club's fourth-choice option. How Sanders responds to such a challenge could determine if he takes any meaningful in-game snaps as a rookie.