BREAKING: ESPN predicts Browns’ Week 1 QB starter after Kenny Pickett injury

ESPN predicted which Browns quarterback would become the team’s Week 1 starter after Kenny Pickett’s recent training camp injury.

Cleveland Browns quarterback Kenny Pickett (8) looks on during mini camp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus.

The Cleveland Browns are entering a rebuilding year in 2025. Cleveland is in the midst of a fierce quarterback battle while Deshaun Watson rehabs his Achilles injury. That quarterback battle will be the most important part of Browns training camp over the next month.

ESPN released an article on Monday predicting which quarterbacks will win training camp battles over the next month.

ESPN’s Dan Graziano predicted that Kenny Pickett will win Cleveland’s starting quarterback job despite his recent injury.

“Pickett. I’m sure that’s not the most popular choice among the fan base, but as one league executive pointed out to me, he’s the one of these four the Browns tried the hardest to get,” Graziano wrote. “They acquired him in early March, knowing Watson was a long shot to play this season and before they knew whether they would bring back Flacco or select a single quarterback — let alone two — in the draft.”

Pickett injured his hamstring towards the end of Saturday’s training camp practice. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Sunday that Pickett would re-evaluate the injury later this week.

Graziano noted that Pickett was playing well before this injury. He is confident that he’ll win the Week 1 starting job, but did not promise he would remain the starter for the entire season.

“There was a time this offseason when Pickett — who now has a hamstring injury — was the only healthy quarterback on the roster. If he performs well enough in camp and in the preseason, don’t be surprised if he gets first crack at this thing, though I’d expect at least one of the rookies to start this season so the Browns can figure out what they have in them before taking two first-round picks into the 2026 draft.”

Which Browns quarterback will challenge Pickett the most in training camp?

ESPN predicts Browns' Week 1 QB starter after Kenny Pickett injury
© Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

If Kenny Pickett is the favorite to win the starting job, which of his teammates will be his main competition?

Cleveland has veteran Joe Flacco and rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders who are competing with Pickett.

Flacco seems like the most likely thorn in Pickett’s side. Gabriel and Sanders may have long-term upside, but they are still rookie quarterbacks.

Graziano noted that Browns fans should watch which quarterbacks get reps throughout training camp.

“Cleveland is open to the idea of any one of the four winning the job for Week 1, and the way the coaching staff divides reps in the coming weeks could offer clues about who is in the lead,” Graziano concluded. “It’s also possible — even likely — they end up trading one of these guys before season starts to ease the logjam.”

This should be one of the tightest training camp battles in the NFL.

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