The Cleveland Browns are preparing to slightly reduce their quarterback group ahead of Tuesday’s roster cutdown to 53 players. At present, they have six quarterbacks.
During a Saturday interview with NFL Network, general manager Andrew Berry indicated that the team plans to keep four quarterbacks: Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Shedeur Sanders, and Dillon Gabriel.
Deshaun Watson is expected to be placed on season-ending injured reserve, and Tyler Huntley is likely to be released.
“To be honest, it’s not a difficult decision for us,” Berry told Mike Garafolo on X. “All four quarterbacks have met our expectations. We really like the group. We view this situation as more of an opportunity than an issue.”
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Keeping four quarterbacks is unusual in the NFL, where teams typically carry only two or three signal-callers on the active roster. Roster spots are often better used on special teams players who can help manage workload over the course of the season.
While the Browns may not have many options right now, that doesn’t necessarily make this an ideal scenario. Cleveland signed Pickett to a $2.6 million contract this offseason and Flacco is under a $4 million deal. The team also invested draft picks in Sanders and Gabriel.
Rather than cutting one of them, the Browns would benefit from trading a quarterback—though that requires finding a team in need of a potential starter. As of now, there aren’t many openings across the league, so Cleveland may have to wait for injuries during the season before reducing their quarterback group to three.
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