The Cleveland Browns were going to have a difficult time fixing their quarterback situation in the 2026 NFL Draft once they lost out on the No. 1 overall selection.
The situation did not improve on Wednesday when Oregon quarterback Dante Moore made the smart decision to return to college for another year. Combining the fact that Moore needs more seasoning after only starting 20 games in college with the prospect of going to the New York Jets, who hold the No. 2 overall pick, made it a no-brainer for Moore.
Cleveland has two selections in the first round, No.6 and No. 24 overall, and Moore’s decision to stay at Oregon thinned out what was already a light quarterback class after Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, who is essentially a lock to go to the Las Vegas Raiders with the draft’s first pick.
So where does that leave the Browns in their never-ending search for a quarterback? Well, the options are not very … promising.
The 2026 NFL Draft
Once Fernando Mendoza comes off the board, the drop to the next tier of quarterbacks is a bit steep.
Alabama’s Ty Simpson is probably the next-best option, but like Moore should have stayed in school after only starting for one season with the Crimson Tide. Simpson looked good in the opening months of last season, but he faded down the stretch as the lack of a running game finally caught up with Alabama. While it was not all his fault, Simpson didn’t exactly leave a positive impression heading into evaluation season.
Mississippi’s Trinidad Chambliss is an exciting prospect, but he may be shorter than his listed height of 6-foot-1 – a definite red flag for Cleveland fans and media. And he is actively fighting the NCAA to stay in school for another year, which may speak to his readiness for the NFL.
Miami’s Carson Beck doesn’t have to answer any questions about his experience as next week’s championship game will be his 55th career start across six seasons, but he still feels like a player that you can’t trust in a big spot.
After that, it is the
annual list of developmental quarterbacks, including Penn State’s Drew Allar, Oklahoma’s John Mateer, LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier, and Clemson’s Cade Klubnik.
General manager Andrew Berry promised a “heavy investment” in the offense this year, but none of those guys feel like they would qualify under that category.
Free agency and trades
Depending on where you look, the Browns are either $15 million over the salary cap or $20 million under the salary cap.
Either way, Berry and the front office will do the standard accounting necessary for the Browns to have money to spend in free agency.
The problem? There is no one available who will be worth investing much into, either in free agency or a trade.
A lot can change in the coming months, but as of now, the “top quarterbacks” who could be available in free agency include Daniel Jones, Malik Willis, Marcus Mariota, Jimmy Garoppolo, Joe Flacco, Russell Wilson, Mitchell Trubisky, Carson Wentz, Kenny Pickett, Tyler Huntley, and Jake Browning.
The
Atlanta Falcons reportedly have restructured Kirk Cousins’ contract with the plan to release him before the start of free agency. And the Raiders really do not need to keep Geno Smith around, so let’s add both of them to the list.
Unless you are someone who believes the Browns should finally fulfill their destiny of having Cousins and/or Garoppolo on the roster after years of being linked to both players, or picking up the “ones they missed out on” in Trubisky or Wentz, there is not much to get excited about here.
The same goes for any potential trade targets, as some of the popular names being tossed around include Mac Jones, Jacoby Brissett, Jameis Winston, Tanner McKee, Davis Mills, Spencer Rattler, Anthony Richardson, Kyler Murray, and Tua Tagovailoa. (The last two could end up being released and would then move to the free agency group.)
Mac Jones will be a name linked to the Browns up until the point where he stays in San Francisco, but is he really the answer after just a handful of starts with the 49ers?
The Status Quo
The Browns actually have three quarterbacks on the current roster. The only problem is that none of them is very good.
Deshaun Watson is going to be on the roster again this fall because of his contract. But there is nothing to indicate he should see the field again in a Cleveland uniform, despite those workout videos on social media that leave some people breathless.
Injuries – two tears of the same Achilles’ tendon and major shoulder surgery – and his off-field problems mean that Watson has only played in 19 games since 2020. And he has not been good in those starts.
Everyone hated Dillon Gabriel from the moment he was drafted, despite Gabriel being the Offensive Player of the Year in the supposedly daunting Big Ten. The Browns gave Gabriel six starts, and the results were not promising. He didn’t turn the ball over, which is always a plus, but he really didn’t do anything to stake his claim to the position, either, as he completed just 59.5 percent of his passes and posted a quarterback rating of 80.8.
At this point, it would be easy to forget that Gabriel is even still on the roster, as he has essentially become persona non grata in town.
Shedeur Sanders started the final seven games, and while he may have been better than Gabriel, at least in the eyes of the fans, the numbers show he was just as bad or even worse. Unless, of course, you are cool with 10 interceptions, a completion percentage of 56.6, and a quarterback rating of 68.1.
Sanders finished the season ranked No. 167 out of 184 NFL quarterbacks since 2000 in Expected Points Added per dropback through their first seven starts,
according to The Athletic. Of the 17 quarterbacks who rank below Sanders, only Alex Smith and Jared Goff have gone on have a productive career.
The rest of the group includes such luminaries as Ken Dorsey, Bryce Petty, Josh Rosen, Tom Savage, and John Beck.
There were plenty of excuses tossed around for the poor play from Sanders, including an aging and ineffective offensive line and a subpar wide receiver group. But Gabriel was throwing to the same receivers, and the line was bad all season.
The bottom line is that the
EPA/dropback from Sanders (-0.21) and Gabriel (-0.20) should leave both of them off any list of players who “cemented their status for 2026.”
So what is the plan?
Even with the arrival of a shiny new and exciting head coach and a “heavy investment” in the offense, it looks like 2026 is going to be another long season for the Browns, given the state of the quarterback position.
At one point during last season, it appeared that salvation would arrive in the draft, but that went away as Cleveland’s draft position improved and the quarterback market thinned out.
Free agency looks like a disaster waiting to happen, and the trade market is not going to offer any relief.
And difficult as it is going to be to watch, the best course of action for the Browns looks to be just keeping the status quo at the position, enduring yet another loss season at quarterback, and hoping you are in a better position to solve the problem in the 2027 NFL Draft.
Which means the quarterback situation is as bleak as it has ever been.
What do you say, Browns fans? How would you fix the quarterback situation?
