Which Cleveland Browns Quarterbacks Actually Have Trade Value?

Trade?   Doesn't it take two teams to trade? What team would pull the trigger for one of these qbs at roster cutdown time? 
 

So I keep hearing how the Browns are going to trade their worst quarterback for draft picks and stuff. Which of the four quarterbacks has trade value?

Shedeur slid because nobody wanted to be part of the circus. In particular, Coach Prime explicitly expressed the intention to interfere with the front office that drafts his son, and will be an obvious candidate to replace the head coach. It's not Shedeur's fault, but the threat is real. Now what team other than the Browns would take on that chaos. Um, Dallas. Okay, but what team other than the Browns and Dallas?

Dillon Gabriel? What team other than the Brown wants a small and slow quarterback? He should not have been drafted at all, and Round 3 makes no sense. For what it's worth, this amateur's belief is that no NFL team will give up a future pick for Gabriel. He will clear waivers if the Browns decide to park him on the Practice Squad.

Kenny Pickett was worth a backup qb (Dorian Thompson-Robinson) plus a Round 6 draft pick. DTR alone was probably worth a 7th round pick. That suggests Pickett's off-season price tag was worth about a Round 5 pick last winter. No other team but the Browns was willing to put up more value. But if he fails in Cleveland this summer, that will devalue him a lot more. Going to a new team, without any training camp reps and only one year remaining on his contract and a $2.6 million cap hit, very likely no team will want him at that price.

Joe Flacco is a proven quarterback that some teams might be interested in as a backup, especially if there is an injury to one of their qbs. A good backup might command a 6th round pick if there is a team looking for an emergency quarterback.

Thus, Flacco is the only qb that I see having any real trade value. And other NFL teams are not like the Browns who impulsively acquire quarterbacks just because. There are going to be a LOT of decent quarterbacks on the market come roster cutdown time. Plus Flacco might well be the Browns number one option.

The Cleveland Browns Have Used 11 Draft Picks on Quarterbacks in 4 Years??!

https://www.instagram.com/thescore/p/DI67Oj3Rl6w/?locale=gb&hl=am-et

The Browns have used 11 draft picks since 2022 on quarterbacks.  Believe it or not, it's true.  They are the most quarterback-obsessed team in the NFL, worshipping a messianic Franchise Quarterback that can never exist with the dearth of talent on the rest of the team. It's a vicious cycle.  With a weak offense, no quarterback can succeed.  Without success, the Browns become more desperate for their Franchise Quarterback.  Well, THERE IS NO MAGICAL FRANCHISE QUARTERBACK IN CLEVELAND.  STOP IT!  Build the team from the ground up, as ever GM has tried to do until he got fired. 

Anyway, here we go:

In 2022, not only did the Browns commit to spending $230 million on Deshaun Watson, but they also threw in the following six draft picks:

2022:  Round 1 Round 4

2023:  Round 1 Round 3

2024:  Round 1 Round 4

In 2023, they also drafted Dorian Thompson-Robinson, an exciting but undersized quarterback in Round 5.  There is no way to prove it, but this writer believes this pick was ordered by Jimmy Haslam.  The evidence is DTR was promoted immediately to second string out of training camp, which is just bizarre, and in 2024, in the middle of the year they demoted Jameis Winston for no reason and once again DTR became second string. That made no sense and suggests meddling from the owner.  Anyway, that's 7 picks. 

For 2025, the Browns traded DTR plus a Round 6 pick to the 49ers for former Steeler Kenny Pickett. That’s eight.

In 2025 they  also drafted Dillon Gabriel in Round 3. That’s nine. It's also a stupid pick given that he is too small and too slow to be an NFL quarterback and he is also 24 years old, which is a bit outside the norm. But anyway, that's nine.

Then they traded a Round 5 and Round 6 pick to move up and take Shedeur Sanders earlier in Round 5.  That's 11 picks. 

Plus we tend to forget that Deshaun Watson is still on the roster with $167 million left on his deal.  The Browns probably would like to spread it over three years rather than two (if they cut him this season they can spread it out between 2025 and 2026), so he has to have a roster spot when he is healthy enough to play, even if he just sits on the bench. It's too expensive to cut him.

So with Watson, Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco on the roster...um, how much room is there for rookies?  Uh, none. There are five quarterbacks on the roster and three roster spots. Why are the Browns blowing draft picks and cap on quarterbacks that cannot be kept on the roster?   

Your guess is as good as mine.  Is Andrew Berry really this foolish, or is owner meddling to blame?