Kenny Pickett’s fate in a Cleveland Browns uniform could very well come down to how he plays against his former team. The Philadelphia Eagles and the Browns are set to meet in the second preseason game of the season. It could be Pickett’s only chance to earn a spot on the Browns’ 53-man roster. Though Andrew Berry entertained the idea of bringing all four quarterbacks onto the active roster, the likelihood of that happening is slim.
Three is more likely with Pickett probably having the most trade value. This is either an audition for him to bump one of the Browns’ rookies to the practice squad or an audition to sway a team to trade for him and land on his third team before the season even starts.
Shedeur Sanders very much set the standard for what a quarterback should look like in the preseason for the Browns. Once Pickett and Dillon Gabriel are healthy enough to play, they will have the pressure of matching Sanders’ preseason debut.
Kenny Pickett’s future in Cleveland hinges on how he plates against his former team
When the Browns acquired Pickett by swapping Dorian Thompson-Robinson and getting a pick as well, it was an odd move. Cleveland needed to make a bigger splash rather than swapping backup quarterbacks. Through camp, Pickett has essentially looked exactly like people expected.
He’s not catching anybody’s attention nor is he outplaying the rookies. This team appears to have more loyalty to Gabriel than any other quarterback other than Joe Flacco. Sanders just flexed his potential on Friday night. That leaves Pickett in an interesting situation. He’s probably the odd man out and has been for most of the offseason.
Where Kenny Pickett ranks on the Browns QB depth chart
Even though Sanders is the only quarterback that hasn’t taken first team reps yet, Pickett is probably behind him in the pecking order, even if the Browns aren’t admitting it yet. The only thing that could give this quarterback battle less clarity is if Pickett looks the best he has since entering the NFL. Cleveland seems unlikely to carry both Pickett and Flacco on their roster to start the regular season, especially after using two draft picks on quarterbacks. At the very least, Pickett can make a statement against the Eagles if he's healthy enough to play.
That starts with the preseason game against the Eagles. If Pickett doesn’t look good enough against his former team to sway the Browns coaching staff and front office it will end up being the game that cost him a spot on the 53-man roster.