Latest news with #KennyPickett
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Browns Could Play Role of 'Spoiler' in Best- and Worst-Case Scenarios for 2025
Browns Could Play Role of 'Spoiler' in Best- and Worst-Case Scenarios for 2025 originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Cleveland Browns took a step backward in 2024 after a playoff appearance in 2023 behind super-sub quarterback Joe Flacco. Flacco returns to the fold for 2025, but he's not been given the keys to the offense yet, and could find himself on the bench to start the season if fellow veteran Kenny Pickett or one of the draft picks in Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders impresses in training camp and preseason. While the defense is clearly the most talented unit on the team, 2025 could ride on the performance of the offense, and particularly, the quarterback position. Pro Football Network predicted each team's best- and worst-case scenarios ahead of the 2025 season, and at the very worst, the Browns could play spoiler. BEST-CASE SCENARIO 6-11 "Things don't look all that peachy for the Cleveland Browns heading into 2025. They don't know who their quarterback is going to be, and they don't have much proven offensive firepower outside of Jerry Jeudy at wide receiver. That makes it difficult to project them as a playoff contender," PFSN wrote. "That said, the Browns could still turn some heads and build momentum going into 2026. They have a talented defense with a great coordinator in Jim Schwartz, and the unit got better by drafting Mason Graham and Carson Schwesinger. "If one of the quarterbacks starts making some noise, Cleveland could play spoiler for some teams down the stretch." WORST-CASE SCENARIO 1-16 "The four-man quarterback competition should be an indication enough that 2025 figures to be a rough season for the Cleveland Browns," PFSN wrote. "None of all their options to replace the injured Deshaun Watson seem particularly inspiring as immediate answers at QB. While the Browns have some good players, their offensive firepower is severely lacking. "The defense took a slight step back in 2024, and unless that unit performs at an elite level this year, they'll likely find themselves in the basement of not just the AFC North but potentially the entire NFL." This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 18, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Browns QB Kenny Pickett predicted to enter training camp as QB1
The Cleveland Browns' quarterback battle is about to begin with the start of 2025 training camp on July 23rd. Rookies and veterans have officially reported to Berea, and to kick things off, Mary Kay Cabot of predicts that Kenny Pickett will have the upper hand early in camp. 'My guess is that Kenny Pickett still has a slight edge in terms of being No. 1 on the depth chart heading into training camp, but that could quickly change,' Mary Kay said in the latest edition of 'Hey Mary Kay!' She also broke down the unique circumstances surrounding the Browns' quarterback situation. With four quarterbacks competing for playing time this season, it's shaping up to be a different kind of training camp for the team: 'It might not be easy to determine where the QBs fall on the imaginary depth chart in the first two weeks of camp, because the Browns will continue two-spotting—or splitting—the four QBs on two different fields to maximize their reps,' Many fans will argue and speculate about Joe Flacco not getting starting quarterback reps in camp, but his experience in the NFL and with the team speaks louder than practice reps. Head coach Kevin Stefanski and the organization know what Flacco can provide if they choose to start him at the beginning of the regular season. There's no question that the quarterback room will be a major storyline throughout training camp. While it's unlikely that rookies Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel will start in Week 1, they'll still have plenty of opportunities behind their veteran competition on the roster. This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: Browns QB Kenny Pickett predicted to enter training camp as QB1
USA Today
2 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Browns QB Kenny Pickett predicted to enter training camp as QB1
The Cleveland Browns' quarterback battle is about to begin with the start of 2025 training camp on July 23rd. Rookies and veterans have officially reported to Berea, and to kick things off, Mary Kay Cabot of predicts that Kenny Pickett will have the upper hand early in camp. 'My guess is that Kenny Pickett still has a slight edge in terms of being No. 1 on the depth chart heading into training camp, but that could quickly change,' Mary Kay said in the latest edition of 'Hey Mary Kay!' She also broke down the unique circumstances surrounding the Browns' quarterback situation. With four quarterbacks competing for playing time this season, it's shaping up to be a different kind of training camp for the team: 'It might not be easy to determine where the QBs fall on the imaginary depth chart in the first two weeks of camp, because the Browns will continue two-spotting—or splitting—the four QBs on two different fields to maximize their reps,' Many fans will argue and speculate about Joe Flacco not getting starting quarterback reps in camp, but his experience in the NFL and with the team speaks louder than practice reps. Head coach Kevin Stefanski and the organization know what Flacco can provide if they choose to start him at the beginning of the regular season. There's no question that the quarterback room will be a major storyline throughout training camp. While it's unlikely that rookies Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel will start in Week 1, they'll still have plenty of opportunities behind their veteran competition on the roster.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Browns training camp questions that must be answered before the season
Training camp is right around the corner, which means Cleveland Browns football is almost here. The Browns are looking to bounce back from a rough 2024 season, where they finished 3-14 and once again started a handful of quarterbacks. They hope this season is different, but their room indicates it could be more of the same. Despite that, there are still more questions than answers for this roster as the team resets for the future. Such a young team is likely to have a lot of depth chart battles in camp, as they may be more willing to go with young upside over veteran nuance. With just a few more weeks before rookies report to camp, here are the questions the Browns must answer before the season starts. Which Veteran QB should they keep? (And how will they divide snaps in camp?) The Browns put themselves in a curious position when they drafted not one, but two rookie quarterbacks, with the second of whom being of very high profile. It wasn't crazy to take multiple shots at the position in a rebuilding year, but odds are they won't roster four quarterbacks throughout the season. Putting Shedeur Sanders on the practice squad wouldn't be a bad idea to start the season, but they risk losing him entirely should another team sign him. There's not much reason to take that chance this season. They could just keep four quarterbacks anyway, but then lose a spot for another player elsewhere on the roster. That means that there is no backup option for Kenny Pickett or Joe Flacco. Either win the job, or lose your spot. Picking won't be easy. The team gave up draft capital to bring in Pickett, but the elder Flacco seems like a safer bet to start meaningful games. Pickett may have a little more upside to tap into, but he likely helps the bottom line of losing games and eases the transition to the young quarterbacks. Flacco, however, will provide competent, and possibly even quality play for a short duration, helping develop the young receivers and running backs before turning it over to a rookie. Will the Browns go with the genuinely better player between the two, or play preference to the one who better benefits the long-term outlook? How do the WRs shake out behind Jerry Jeudy? Jerry Jeudy's breakout was a sight for sore eyes in a lost 2024 season. While we still aren't sure of his ceiling as a legit WR1, the team can at least rely on him to be the top option at receiver. With David Njoku at tight end, that gives them two solid starting options at pass catcher. The question remains: who will step up behind them? The hope is that it will be Cedric Tillman, the third-year and former third-round draft pick out of Tennessee. Through the struggles of the offense, there hasn't been much room for Tillman to get a real shot. When that opportunity arose, he lost the rest of his season to a concussion. His flashes have been exciting but have come in a very small sample size, so it'll take a sustained quality of play to earn his role. Otherwise, the team has several other young options waiting for a chance. Jamari Thrash, David Bell, Michael Woods II, and Kaden Davis are all still on their rookie deals and are looking to carve out a spot. The team also brought in veterans Diontae Johnson and DeAndre Carter to compete as well. Outside of Jeudy and the first man up in Tillman, it's anyone's guess who could fill out the remaining three or four spots at the position. It'll also be telling if they opt for experience in Johnson or Carter, or take a chance on the youth. Whose getting snaps in the edge rotation? Bringing back Myles Garrett solidified a superpower among the teams' pass rush, yet they'll still be looking to find his sidekick on the opposite side. Much like at receiver, Cleveland has multiple young players looking to break out. The incumbents, Isaiah McGuire and Alex Wright, both showed some flashes last year. However, the team added depth by bringing in Julian Okwara and former first-round pick Joe Tryon-Shoyinka. There will be bountiful opportunities in this pass rush room as defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz utilized the full depth of his bench last season. But as long as Myles Garrett is healthy, a bulk of the available snaps will be across from him, leaving room for one or two primary edge defenders. Finding gold here would go a long way for the Browns as they re-visualize their roster for the future, so dividing up snaps and giving proper opportunities will be critical this year. Quinshon Judkins. Sigh. Quinshon Judkins was an incredibly promising running back prospect that the Browns took at the top of the second round of the draft. He was built to be a workhorse back, but pairing him with a faster, more dynamic back in Dylan Sampson was an impressive move to empower the run game. It was bold to select such a position at this point of a rebuild, but the Browns needed talent on offense and found incredible value. Now, the Browns must once again navigate off-the-field issues in a strong investment after the news of Judkins' arrest. This is a tricky situation. Judkins' status remains unknown, but it's tracking to result in at least a suspension. However, because of the NFL collusion case, as well as the Houston Texans guaranteeing the full contract of their second-round pick Jayden Higgins, the rest of the second-round class (except the Browns' own Carson Schwesinger) has yet to sign with training camp quickly approaching. That leaves Quinshon Judkins without his NFL contract. The legal side of this situation has to play out before the Browns will have any idea of how to proceed. It doesn't appear there's much of a best-case scenario here, but there's now a chance the team burned a high second-round draft pick in a crucial reset year. Even if the situation clears up, there's a reasonable chance Judkins misses both time in camp and during the season. This is incredibly unideal for a team set up to run the ball early and often, but now they must wait to see how his legal matters play out. This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: Browns training camp questions that must be answered before the season
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Browns roster ranked by positional units
With veterans reporting to training camp shortly, the 2025 NFL season is just around the corner. While expectations aren't too high for the Cleveland Browns this year, it'll serve as a crucial season for player development as the youth movement takes hold of the depth chart. Some positions are better off than others, as the team was forced to reset at some spots, bypass others, and added elsewhere. This looks to be a year where they will get youngsters on the field early and often and look to develop toward the future. So, as we enter another season, lets take a look at how the Browns depth chart stacks up and rank it by the talent of the positional units 7. Quarterbacks It's an awkward and confusing mess at quarterback and the future of the position is likely not on the team right now. Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett will battle it out to be the sacrificial lamb to start the season, but odds are that the pair of rookies, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, will see a bulk of the starting time as the team determines if either can possibly be a future starter. The hit rate on mid-round quarterbacks is quite low, so odds of the third or fifth-round draft picks hitting is not in the Browns favor. While watching the young quarterbacks battle it out through the season should be fun, fans will mostly be watching how the 2026 quarterback class shapes up. 6. Linebackers The writing is on the wall for linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, who went down with a scary neck injury during the season. The reports and whispers from leadership have not been promising, but when the team drafted a similar style of linebacker, Carson Schwesinger, atop the second round of the last draft, it spells out what is expected out of Owusu-Koramoah. It's a terrible cherry on top of an awful cake that has been the DeShaun Watson era for the Browns. Owusu-Koramoah was one of the team's emerging young talents and had been rewarded with a contract extension, but now fans and teammates alike have to hope we'll see him return to the field at some point at all after it was announced he won't be back for at least 2025. It'll leave the Browns with plenty of questions at the position for this season. A lot will be on rookie Carson Schwesinger's plate to take up the role Owusu-Koramoah left behind. A pair of veterans, Jordan Hicks and Devin Bush, can take up snaps but won't provide much impact. Otherwise, it'll be up to Mohamoud Diabate to take the next step. T4. [Tie] Pass Catchers & Defensive Backs It was hard to determine which group will do the Browns better next season. From a team perspective, the secondary will get far more support from the pass rush than the receivers will from their quarterbacks. However, from a pure talent perspective, there's a little more upside to the receivers. The secondary features the best player, Denzel Ward, holding down their top spot. Ward is elite enough to warrant giving the DBs an advantage, but behind him has been disappointing despite the high investments. Greg Newsome hasn't lived up to his first-round status, and Grant Delpit had a poor season after getting paid. There's some solid depth here from Martin Emerson and free agent Rayshawn Jenkins, but one safety spot will remain a question mark. While the receivers may not have a player as elite as Denzel Ward, David Njoku isn't too far behind when healthy. He's been a bright spot in bad seasons, and showed what he's capable of when Flacco had his last run with the team. Furthermore, Jerry Jeudy has shown some of that first-round upside last season when a capable passer was starting. Those two, when paired with some upside behind Cedric Tillman, gives this group a little more versatility than Ward does alone. Either way, it'll be nice to get some answers for both of these groups this season. They both feature pieces to build around, but need younger talent to step up to become mainstays. 3. Running Backs* For a brief moment, there was significant hype around the Browns run game going into the season. It was likely that the return to Kevin Stefanski's scheme would allow the Browns to lean on a ground-and-pound approach behind a stable of promising running backs. Then second-round pick Quinshon Judkins was arrested. An incredibly promising athlete, Judkins should have taken the lead back role, and while he still can, it'll come with far less enthusiasm from fans who've been through this plenty of times recently. There is still a contract and potential suspension to deal with, so there's no promise that we'll see a full season of Judkins right away. Now, returning Jerome Ford at a reduced price seems to be a blessing even if expectations aren't too high. There is still Dylan Sampson, the lightning to Judkins' thunder and the team's fourth-round pick. Sampson was a strong prospect himself, but now may get the chance to lead the team. Assuming Judkins still plays a majority of the season, there's plenty of depth and upside at this spot. 2. Defensive Line With Myles Garrett championing the defensive line, this unit couldn't not be near the top. There's still some questions surrounding Garrett, but the team has youth and the ultimate advantage next to them. Garrett has continued to be his elite, All-Pro level self as he stacks seasons toward a first-ballot Hall of Fame nomination. Adding Mason Graham to the interior with their first-round pick finally bolsters the unit with another high upside defender next to Garrett. Graham was typically seen as the next best pass rusher aside from Abdul Carter in the class, so while rookies are hard to project, the Browns landed a strong bet. The team has a solid cast of youth and experience otherwise. Players like Maliek Collins, Shelby Harris, and Mike Hall Jr should be a reasonable rotation of talents to keep each other fresh. On the edge, there's a few young players in Isaiah McGuire and Alex Wright who hope to play themselves into mainstays across from Garrett. This is a unit teeming with upside across from one of the league's elite players. You could certainly argue it's the team's best group, but… 1. Offensive Line The teams' depth and continuity on the offensive line makes them the best unit in my eyes. There are still questions among this group, most notably at tackle with the status of Dawand Jones and the health of Jack Conklin. However, there's a chance both can play at their highest level this upcoming year. The true strength is at guard where both Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller feature All-Pro upsides, while center Ethan Pocic has at least been a reliable starter. The guards make everyone's jobs a little easier, and can pave the way to make lesser talent more productive. What's more exciting is that there's legitimate depth here. Third-round pick Zak Zinter awaits for this opportunity, while the team managed to get Teven Jenkins on a very cheap prove-it deal. Furthermore, bringing in swing tackle Cornelius Lucas who has plenty of starting experience on both sides is great versatility. After the brutal hits the line took from injuries last season, any stretch of health would help. But, now the team is a little more prepared with capable players in backup spots, and a couple of elite talents in the middle. This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: Browns roster ranked by positional units
