The Cleveland Browns probably have one of the most interesting camp battles, and it's at the quarterback position. Some big news was revealed on who will be the starter for their preseason game against the Carolina Panthers, and Shedeur Sanders will reportedly be given the nod. A day later, head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed the news that everyone had already heard.
“We will rest some starters, some players will play, obviously holding out some guys due to injury,” Stefanski said to reporters. “Then we'll play Shedeur at quarterback, we just signed Snoop Huntley, and get him back up to speed quickly. He's been in a few different offenses since we last saw him.”
Browns QB Shedeur Sanders now has been officially announced as Friday night’s starter vs. the Panthers.
pic.twitter.com/B77dEUBVrP— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 6, 2025
These will be big reps for Sanders, especially since he was listed at the bottom of the depth chart. If anyone is wondering why the Browns made the decision to start Sanders, it's because of injuries at the position.
“To take this another step: Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and Dillon Gabriel will all not play. The majority of snaps are going to Shedeur Sanders and then former Pro Bowl QB Tyler ‘Snoop' Huntley,” Ari Meirov of The33rdTeamFB wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Pickett and Gabriel are currently the quarterbacks dealing with injuries, while Flacco just isn't playing. This means that Sanders will get the opportunity to try and move up the depth chart.
Sanders has been playing well during training camp, but there's no doubt he has a tall hill to climb. The latest update on the quarterback battle was that Flacco had the edge to win the starting job, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
“The Browns' familiarity with Joe Flacco frees up the team to evaluate the other quarterbacks more closely early in camp,” Fowler said. “As one team source put it, there's ‘less sensitivity' to Flacco's play because they know exactly what he can do. This could eventually give him the leg up in the process.”
