As far as Kenny Pickett is concerned, he’s all about his business.
Days after the Cleveland Browns brought in veteran Joe Flacco to compete with Pickett for the starting job, the former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback sent a clear message he’s not backing down from anyone.
“That’s the plan, man (to start),” he told The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Jerry DiPaola on April 12. “I’m not going there to hang out. I want to go play. I’m excited, been working hard for it, taking it a day at a time … Total respect for Joe, what he’s done and I’m excited to get to work with him, too.”
After spending one season as the backup to Super Bowl MVP Jalen Hurts in Philadelphia, Pickett was traded from the Eagles to the Browns in March. Cleveland starting quarterback Deshaun Watson tore his Achilles tendon during the regular season then re-tore it in January.
Flacco, a former Super Bowl MVP with the Baltimore Ravens, was named NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 2023 with the Browns after he came in for an injured Watson and went 4-1 in 5 starts and made the playoffs.
“Reunion: the Cleveland Browns and veteran quarterback Joe Flacco reached agreement today on a one-year, $4 million deal worth up to $13 million with incentives, his agency @JLSports3 told ESPN,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter wrote on his official X account. “Flacco now will return to Cleveland, where he won the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year award in 2023. Flacco also spoke with the Steelers and Vikings but opted to spend his 18th NFL season with the Browns.”
Flacco started 6 games for the Indianapolis Colts in 2024 after starting quarterback Anthony Richardson was benched and went 2-4. Pickett went 2-0 as the Eagles’ primary quarterback in 2024 when Hurts was in concussion protocol, including one start.
Pickett Traded for Second Consecutive Year
The Eagles got what they needed out of Pickett in his one season with the franchise in 2024 with a backup quarterback good enough that it let them sleep at night.
In return, the Eagles got Pickett a Super Bowl ring and a chance to become a starter again in the NFL when they traded him to the Browns in exchange for quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson and a 2025 fifth round pick (No. 165 overall) on March 10.
Either Flacco or Pickett will arguably be an upgrade for the Browns. Since Cleveland sent their first round picks in 2022, 2023 and 2024 to the Houston Texans in exchange for Watson in March 2022, he’s missed large chunks of time for 3 consecutive seasons. He was suspended for the first 11 games of the 2022 season and suffered season ending injuries in 2023 and 2024.
NFL.com’s Nick Shook ranked Watson dead last out of the 59 NFL quarterbacks who started games in 2024. The Browns still owe Watson $92 million over the next 2 seasons on the fully guaranteed 5-year, $230 million contract extension he signed in March 2022.
“Watson proved in 2024 he’s not fit to play quarterback in the NFL anymore,” Shook wrote. “He quickly lost his trust in his offensive line, rarely gave plays time to develop before pulling his eyes down in anticipation of the rush, lacked arm strength, wasn’t mobile enough to elude defenders and flat-out failed to help his offense in any situation. With Watson at quarterback, the Browns owned what was indisputably the worst offense in the NFL.”
