Developing one young quarterback is already a full-time grind in the NFL—it takes a head coach, a patient coordinator, a sharp QB coach, and a front office willing to ride the bumps. But when a team tries juggling two or even three? That’s where things get murky. Kevin Stefanski and the Browns have Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel in tow, with Kenny Pickett still hanging around. It sounds like depth, but it might be Cleveland’s most complicated challenge yet.

Enter the Browns insider, Jason Lloyd, who believes that QB1 takes nearly every first-team rep during the season. So, where does that leave the rest? “I mean, when you’re trying to get two quarterbacks ready, you’re not gonna have another quarterback ready,” he pointed out earlier this week on the Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show. But still, Kevin Stefanski and Co. are rolling into the 2025 season with Sanders, Gabriel, Pickett, and veteran Joe Flacco.

And that’s where it gets pretty messy for the team. The reason? Well, while discussing the Browns’ quarterback room, Lloyd explained that this season is a one-stopgap for the Browns. “This is a one-year stopgap with the Browns,” he said. Translation? Cleveland is using the stacked quarterback room to turn the tables this year before they eventually draft a new QB in 2026. At least that’s what Jason Lloyd predicted.

“I am looking at this as a ‘Hey, we’ve got a year to kill before we can go get the guy we want,'” he added. As per the Browns insider, Cleveland is experimenting with their quarterbacks rather than building for the long term with any of them (yet). As things are already shaping up, Kevin Stefanski isn’t going to use Flacco as the starting quarterback throughout the season. He’s going to be your QB1, sure, given that he’s the seasoned vet. But with Shedeur, Gabriel, and Pickett in the mix as well, the Browns will experiment with these quarterbacks as well.

The vision, as per Lloyd, seems clear: the Browns aren’t committed to any of these QBs this year. It’s more like an experiment to see how the current QB room works out before they eventually draft one next year. And here’s the kicker—”We might as well bring these guys in and see if we run into anything. And if one of these guys starts to surge ahead, I think you’ll see them throw all their resources into that guy,” Lloyd added.

The picture is clear now: the Browns are expected to draft another QB next year. However, if one of the young QBs (Shedeur or maybe Gabriel) outperforms everyone in their rookie season, the Browns will then be ready to throw all their resources into that guy. And that means only one thing: Cleveland is in no mood to develop multiple quarterbacks in a single season, which brings us to square one: Are the Browns interested in developing young guys like Shedeur Sanders this year?

Does Shedeur Sanders lose the battle in Kevin Stefanski’s QB room?

Ever since the Browns picked Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round of the NFL draft, the former Colorado quarterback has been grinding to make his way to become the starting quarterback. But it’s not that easy when you’ve got three other quarterbacks to compete against—one rookie, and two veterans. But still, Sanders has turned heads in the Browns’ practice sessions.

He threw for 77.4% (41-for-53) with 9 TDs and an INT, best in the QB room. The rookie spent time with veteran Flacco and learned a thing or two about quarterbacking. But the big question: was it enough for him to earn the starting role? It doesn’t seem so. Former NFL wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh recently shared his valuable insight on the Browns’ QB room, and Shedeur is nowhere to be seen as the QB1.

“I was told by somebody that’s in the building, that ain’t a player, it’s really coming down to Kenny Pickett or Dillon Gabriel,” he explained, but that wasn’t the only insight from his side. Pickett and Gabriel are in a race for the QB1 role ahead of Sanders, no doubt. But the reports told us that Sanders performed well in the minicamps. That’s the messy part.

“Now, when you get the reports that Shedeur’s completed 7 of 9 passes. Like, is it against starters or is it threes and fours? Guys that’s going to get released? If it’s not against the starters or guys that’s going to be on the team. You don’t know how they’re dividing up the reps, and it’s virtually impossible.” Translation? Shedeur’s numbers might look good, but they might not matter to the coaches if they came against weak opponents.

So, where things stand right now? Well, not at the place where Shedeur wanted them to be. Because he hasn’t played a single first-team snap, even though the outside noise is buzzing that he outperformed every QB in the building. Still, he’s locked as QB4. That’s a major red flag for him. Training season and preseason are yet to kick off, and things might change for Shedeur. But until then, things are messy for the rookie.