Schefter Expects Browns to Keep Flacco, Shedeur, Gabriel, Pickett All on 53-Man Roster

While veteran Joe Flacco won the Cleveland Browns' four-way quarterback competition when he was officially named their Week 1 starter on Monday, one insider still expects the other signal-callers to join him on the official roster.

During Monday's episode of NFL Live, ESPN's Adam Schefter boldly declared that the Browns will keep 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett and rookies Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel as Flacco's backups for the 2025 season.

"I expect the Cleveland Browns to carry four quarterbacks on their final 53-man roster," Schefter said. "... They're gonna keep both rookies, they're gonna keep Flacco. So we're really talking about Kenny Pickett, and I expect he makes the roster, because quarterbacks are currency in this league."

While Schefter sounded definitive in his reporting, Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski told reporters on Sunday that it's "not realistic" to keep four quarterbacks on the 53-man roster.

The Browns are still missing quarterback Deshaun Watson while he recovers from a torn Achilles. Cleveland announced that Flacco will start the season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals, and he's also expected to see some action in the preseason finale against the Los Angeles Rams.

Schefter didn't shoot down the possibility of the Browns trading Pickett before Week 1, but he also raised another potential outcome.

"Or maybe somebody calls about one of the rookie quarterbacks," he said.

Rostering four quarterbacks isn't necessarily the best way to stack a depth chart, but it seems like Cleveland is ready to accept the challenge.