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The Cleveland Browns are one of the most fascinating teams to watch during NFL training camp. Cleveland is in the middle of a four-headed quarterback battle that will decide the team's Week 1 starter. One Browns signal caller is emerging as the favorite to win this training camp battle.
Browns quarterback Joe Flacco is now receiving buzz as the “strong favorite” to win the team's starting job.
“Pickett said he’s working “24-7” to get back to full speed but acknowledged he’s losing ground,” The Athletic's Zac Jackson wrote on Sunday. “Joe Flacco’s two best throwing days have been the two most recent days, Friday and Saturday. Neither of the rookies ever had much of a realistic chance to win the starting job this August, and over the last week, Flacco has gone from presumed favorite to strong favorite.”
Flacco is already a popular guy around Cleveland's facility, with his tenure as Baltimore's franchise quarterback seemingly forgotten.
Flacco had a magical run with the Browns in 2023, coming out of nowhere and playing like a starting NFL quarterback. He led the Browns on an unlikely trip to the playoffs, where they lost to the Texans.
It will be interesting to see if Flacco can remain the lead dog throughout the rest of training camp.
ESPN predicts Browns' Week 1 quarterback starter after Kenny Pickett injury
Not everyone agrees that Flacco has Cleveland's starting job locked up.
ESPN's Dan Graziano made a bold prediction of his own on Monday. Graziano believes that Kenny Pickett can still win the team's starting 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 suffered a hamstring injury that should keep him out of practice for some time. Even so, Graziano is confident that he can win the starting job.
Pickett was playing well at training camp before his injury. If he returns to practice early enough in training camp, he could easily claw his way back to the top of the depth chart.
At this point, it would be a huge surprise if someone either than Pickett or Flacco started for the Browns in Week 1.
