It appears a change at quarterback is coming for the Cleveland Browns, potentially as early as this week.
But an even more seismic one could be on the horizon later this season.
Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com predicted on Monday that head coach Kevin Stefanski will bench 40-year-old Joe Flacco for rookie Dillon Gabriel ahead of the team’s Week 5 matchup with the Minnesota Vikings in London.
A significant part of her rationale included Stefanski’s own comments Monday on the QB situation, during which he twice refused to commit to Flacco as the starter, or commit to a change under center.
“My focus is on making sure this offense plays better,” Stefanski said in response to a second question about Flacco.
Gabriel is the logical choice if, and when, the Browns bench Flacco. He was a third-round pick and beat out fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders for the QB2 job during the preseason.
However, Cleveland will have other options as the year rolls along, including Deshaun Watson who continues rehabilitating a twice-torn Achilles tendon and remains in just the fourth year of his five-year, $230 million contract.
Read More: Browns HC Noncommittal on Keeping Joe Flacco as Starting Quarterback
“The Browns also have Bailey Zappe on the practice squad, and Deshaun Watson progressing in his rehab from his re-torn Achilles,” Cabot wrote on Sunday. “Watson, who’s on the reserve/Physically Unable to Perform list, is eligible to have his 21-day practice window open beginning this week. He’s not expected to be ready until sometime in October, but he’s eligible nonetheless.”
The best outcome for Cleveland as far as Watson is concerned is probably for him not to return to active status at all in 2025, as they could then cash in on his injury insurance policy and also receive significant salary-cap relief from the league.
“If [Watson] can play, the Browns will have to move him to the 53-man roster or release him,” Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk wrote on Aug. 6. “That could prompt the Browns to disagree with Watson, even if it sets the stage for a formal grievance — with Watson saying he’s healthy enough to play and the Browns saying he’s not.
“The stakes are high for the Browns. If they opt not to put him on the roster with their existing clusterfudge of quarterbacks, releasing him would set the stage for a devastating 2026 cap charge of $131.161 million,” Florio continued. “The best outcome for the Browns is to get Watson to want to spend the season on the PUP list.”
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But if Watson doesn’t end up on the PUP list for the entirety of 2025, there is a world in which he could find himself back in the starting lineup ahead of the league’s Nov. 4 trade deadline.
“Gabriel might be overwhelmed. He was a third-round pick for a reason. But I’ve long referred to this season as a fact-finding mission to see what the Browns have and what they still need,” Jason Lloyd of The Athletic wrote Monday. “It’s very likely they’re taking another quarterback at the top of next year’s draft, but there’s only one way to find out what they have in Gabriel. If he is a mess, they can always go back to Flacco in a few weeks. (Yes, I said Flacco, not Shedeur Sanders. It seems clear Sanders is viewed as a developmental pick. Barring injury, I don’t expect to see him on the field anytime soon.)”
So, to recap: Cabot believes Flacco is out and Gabriel is in come Week 5. And Lloyd can see a scenario in which Gabriel struggles, forcing Cleveland to reverse course a few weeks down the road. Though that is precisely the timeline for Watson’s potential return to the roster, which the Browns probably don’t want, but which they may have little power to stop.
Lloyd doesn’t believe Sanders is getting on the field this season, so the front office and coaching staff at that point could go back to Flacco, which didn’t work for the first month of the year, roll with Zappe who hasn’t proven himself a legitimate starting option across four NFL seasons, or throw the QB with the $46 million annual average salary back onto the field.
Considering the money Cleveland has spent on Watson and the accumulation of facts and opinions offered by multiple Browns insiders over the last 48 hours, it isn’t impossible that fans could see No. 4 back on the field starting again at some point in 2025, maybe even sooner rather than later.
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