Oh, how things have changed in Cleveland in a year. Around this time last year, the Browns barely had an option to pick from their QB room. Deshaun Watson, Jameis Winston, and Dorian Thompson-Robinson just weren’t convincing enough. Cut to today, and Kevin Stefanski has so many exciting, experienced, and versatile playmakers to choose from.
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Stefanski’s list of Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel, Kenny Pickett, Joe Flacco, and potentially Deshaun Watson is enviable, no doubt. But with options comes confusion.
On one hand, the 40-year-old Flacco brings a wealth of experience and Super Bowl pedigree. On the other hand, Sanders and Gabriel have flashed the kind of potential that could make them the future face of the franchise (yes, we’re hyperbolizing a bit). And somewhere in between sits Kenny Pickett. He’s an equal part of experience and promise. So, who should be the Browns’ QB1 come Week 1?
While most are split with their answers, Cris Carter is clear that Pickett should start as the talisman in Cleveland this season. The reason? Because the former Steelers QB isn’t as old as Flacco and not as young as the rookies.
“I think I said Kenny Pickett before. He’s just got more experience than the [rookies],” said the former Vikings WR. But if it were up to Carter, he’d urge Sanders and Gabriel to fast-track their learning curve and aim to start mid-season.
“And I think because they got so many quarterbacks, the reps become important. So, if I’m Dillon Gabriel or if I’m Shedeur, am I going to get enough reps to beat these guys out? Because you can’t beat them out on paper. You can’t beat them out [by] just watching film,” added the NFL legend.
Carter didn’t shy away from admitting his love for Sanders. “I think that Shedeur will be starting by Week 6 to 8,” he predicted.
The former Eagles wideout also didn’t hesitate to express his disappointment in seeing the rookie battle for a starting spot. That’s a complete 180 from his pre-draft projections, when Shedeur was expected to go in the top 10 but ended up sliding to the fifth round.
For Carter, the reason behind this “tragedy” seemed to be one of the interview answers Sanders reportedly gave to NFL teams.
“One of his answers, they asked him who was his favorite quarterback, and he was like, ‘Oh, I don’t even really watch the NFL. I’m not really into football like that. I don’t watch too much NFL football,’ revealed Carter.
“And the coach was like, ‘Oh my God. If Deion [Sanders] could hear this, he would snap. If there’s 10 answers, that’s the one you don’t say,” he added.
In an ideal world, Sanders would have been in the same stature that Cam Ward finds himself today: Locked in as the starter for a team with high expectations. But as the Sanders family has witnessed of late, life isn’t fair.
From Deion’s shocking cancer battle to his sons’ NFL Draft woes, things have been far from ideal for the clan. But if the Sanders have shown anything over the years, it’s that they never back down. After all, will a success story be any good if there are no obstacles in it?
