The Cleveland Browns enter training camp with an unusually crowded quarterback room, carrying four passers for the second year in a row as they prepare for the upcoming season.
General manager Andrew Berry and the coaching staff face decisions not only about who will start but also about how to manage the depth chart heading into the regular season.
Currently, the Browns have Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson, Dillon Gabriel and Taylen Green in their quarterback room, but according to ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi, the team is expected to eventually reduce the group to three quarterbacks, which means a trade could be imminent
“Green, the Browns’ sixth-round pick this year, is viewed as a developmental prospect, but the Browns are bullish on his upside,” Oyefusi wrote. “Like last season, a trade to bring the quarterback room to three entering the regular season seems to be a likely outcome.”
He pointed out that Watson and Sanders handled the majority of the snaps during spring practices, with 2025 third-round selection Gabriel typically taking the remaining work. But with Cleveland being high on Green, it seems that Gabriel could be the odd man out.
Watson and Sanders are locked in a competition for the starting role. Watson, who missed all of last season recovering from an Achilles injury, still carries significant contractual considerations that would complicate any trade involving him.
Sanders, meanwhile, showed enough progress in the spring to earn a genuine look at the top job and could also serve as a capable backup given Watson’s recent injury history. Moving Sanders before fully evaluating his development would represent a sizable risk, while his trade value would likely be higher than that of the other options.
Gabriel started six games as a rookie in 2025, completing 59.5 percent of his passes for 937 yards with seven touchdowns and two interceptions. He posted a 1-5 record as the starter before a concussion against the Baltimore Ravens in November ended his run.
Sanders took over for the final seven games and displayed enough growth to remain firmly in the mix this summer. Gabriel received fewer opportunities during offseason work, placing him in an awkward middle ground—neither the clear starter nor the pure developmental project.
Keeping him as the third quarterback would limit Green’s chances to develop, and the Browns are reluctant to risk exposing the rookie to the waiver wire by stashing him on the practice squad.
Gabriel’s trade value is not expected to be especially high, yet a team seeking inexpensive depth with some starting experience could find him appealing.
The Browns have been down this road before. Last season they traded Kenny Pickett to the Las Vegas Raiders shortly before the opener and later sent Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals once Gabriel had taken over as the starter.
Training camp and the preseason will give all four quarterbacks opportunities to reshape the depth chart. The quarterbacks and rookies reported to the team facility on July 23, with veterans scheduled to join on July 28 and the first full practice set for July 29.
Those sessions will help clarify the hierarchy, but the organization already appears inclined to make a move that reduces the room to a more manageable size before the regular season begins.
