On the surface, the Browns' quarterback situation is intriguing if only because there's no telling how it will play out in 2025.
Cleveland enters the new season with a grab bag of signal-callers. They acquired former Eagles backup Kenny Pickett via trade, adding the 2022 first-rounder to a room that welcomed back 2023 hero Joe Flacco and brought in two rookies in Oregon's Dillon Gabriel and Colorado's Shedeur Sanders this spring.
None exist as an obvious starter. But another offseason addition, wide receiver Diontae Johnson, expects one to emerge as the favorite soon enough.
"I think they are going to roll with Kenny (Pickett) for right now," Johnson said during an appearance on the "Sports and Suits" podcast.
While Cleveland's active offseason created a wide-open competition that could remain unpredictable throughout training camp, most following the Browns in Berea, Ohio, projected Pickett as the team's first choice.
Logically, it makes sense. Pickett has NFL experience from his time spent as the Steelers' starter before it became clear he wasn't their future under center, and at 27 years old, he's plenty young enough to be worth exploring. Flacco exists as their backup plan in a glass case ready to be broken in case of emergency.
"I've been seeing Kenny going like right now with the ones. Then Joe (Flacco) will come in," Johnson said. "I think they are probably going to roll with him just to see like he's coming off a season with Philly and having a Super Bowl. So, I think they are going to stick with him through the preseason. Then you know they can live with Joe and what he brings to the table."
Emergency can take on a number of different appearances, a reality Cleveland fans know all too well. But the true intrigue resides with who the Browns drafted earlier this offseason.
Sanders has attracted plenty of attention because of his name and celebrity status established long before he traded his Buffaloes uniform for Browns gear. Gabriel, meanwhile, arrived as a bit of a surprise; most didn't expect him to be selected in the draft until Day Three, yet Cleveland traded up to take him in the third round.
For now, it seems as though the Browns will let the youngsters take their reps in the shadows and give Pickett the first shot at earning the starting job. As Johnson said, Pickett "can spin it," although doing so in practice is not nearly as challenging as it is in the fire of an NFL game.
Johnson, meanwhile, isn't spending too much time worrying about who is throwing him passes. After a tumultuous season that saw him spend time with three different teams (and infamously refuse to enter a game while with the Ravens), he's focused on getting back on track -- and he isn't interested in making grand predictions about how he or the Browns will fare.
"I don't want to put all that out there. I just want to attack every day one day at a time," Johnson said. "Not try to think too much about what's ahead and just be where my feet are because if I do that, I feel like I'm going to be pressing."
After watching their acquisition of Deshaun Watson amount to a "big swing and miss," it's clear the Browns are still picking up the pieces and attempting to reassemble their organizational puzzle entering 2025. As of now, it's unclear how the final product will look, starting with quarterback.
