When the Cleveland Browns acquired Kenny Pickett, the move was largely seen as one with upside. They traded a fifth-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and Dorian Thompson-Robinson to the Philadelphia Eagles for Pickett, with the hope that he could be a young, long-term option at the position.
Pickett, a former first-round pick for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who went on to win a Super Bowl championship with the Eagles, and a man who's earned almost $14 million over his career, seemed like the perfect bridge guy to a new era. He's still young, just 27, and is a winning quarterback (15-10 record), so there was plenty of upside with him as a potential starter for the Browns.
Sure, he had his ups and downs in Pittsburgh, but for the most part he's been a very solid option. Far from an elite quarterback, but good enough that with Kevin Stefanski, an improvement could happen.
Then came Shedeur Sanders. It seems unlikely at this point, despite the injuries Sanders has been dealing with in training camp, that Sanders is going to get cut by the Browns. While his first outing against the Carolina Panthers wasn't perfect, it was certainly good enough to get people talking.
It's very unlikely that he'll be cut, barring him falling apart down the stretch in training camp. The Browns are super invested in fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel and Joe Flacco is the assumed starter for the regular season. That means that if one person has to go, that's going to end up being Pickett.
If Pickett can play in the last two preseason games and impress, then maybe, just maybe he can force the Browns' hands and make them cut Flacco or one of their rookie quarterbacks. It just doesn't seem likely that he'll be able to impress so much that the team changes directions.
It's a shame that Sanders was avalible in the fifth-round, because Pickett was seen as a long-term option by some after he arrived. Even when the team took Gabriel in the third-round, Pickett's spot seemed secured. Yet, now Sanders and his solid play has many wondering if keeping him would be the best move. Especially with the possibility of him improving and becoming the type of player many thought he could be coming out of Colorado.
If that happens, Pickett will just be a footnote in Sanders' story.