Almost immediately after New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr confirmed earlier in May that he was retiring due to reasons related to a significant shoulder injury, some wondered if New Orleans would reach out to the Cleveland Browns about a possible trade for either Joe Flacco or former Pittsburgh Steelers starter Kenny Pickett.
For a piece published on Sunday, Browns reporter Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer explained why the Saints likely won't get help from Cleveland regarding their quarterback situation anytime soon.
"The Browns have no plans to trade any of their quarterbacks at this point," Cabot directly said. "They’re intent on conducting this four-way quarterback competition and having the QBs bring out the best in each other. By roster cutdown day on Aug. 27, they will be prepared to part with at least one of the quarterbacks. Which one will be determined by the competition, and how their depth chart order shakes out."
While the Browns added rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders to their quarterback room via April's draft, most people who cover the club believe either Flacco or Pickett will emerge as Cleveland's Week 1 starter. Cabot insisted that Pickett "heads in as the frontrunner to win the starting job at the outset," even though Flacco is the only signal-caller on the Browns who has had success playing in the offense run by head coach Kevin Stefanski.
Flacco went 4-1 as a starter to guide the 2023 Browns to a playoff berth. As of Monday morning, FanDuel Sportsbook listed the one-time Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award winner as a +116 betting favorite to win Cleveland's quarterback competition that almost certainly will last through the preseason. At that same time, FanDuel Sportsbook had Pickett at +220 odds, Sanders at +370 and Gabriel at +830.
Cabot added that she "could see a team trading for Flacco if he doesn’t win the starting job" later this summer. However, it's worth noting that first-year New Orleans head coach Kellen Moore was Pickett's offensive coordinator when the 26-year-old was a backup with the Philadelphia Eagles this past season. Perhaps Moore will want to once again work with Pickett if Saints rookie Tyler Shough fails to impress through summer workouts and upcoming exhibition games.
Before the Saints made Shough the 40th overall pick of this year's draft, some analysts referred to him as the most pro-ready quarterback in the 2025 class. On Monday, FanDuel Sportsbook had Shough as a -310 betting favorite to be New Orleans' Week 1 starter over Spencer Rattler (+215) and Jake Haener (+3500).
Even if such forecasts prove to be accurate, the Saints may want to acquire a veteran such as Flacco to mentor Shough in the event that Cleveland elects to start Pickett and also stashes Gabriel and Sanders on the active roster before August comes to an end.
