Browns QB Shedeur Sanders will start Sunday's game vs. the Raiders, HC Kevin Stefanski announced. QB Dillon Gabriel remains in the concussion protocol. Sanders was a disaster in his first regular-season appearance this past week, completing four of 16 passes for 47 yards, 0 TDs, and one INT. He also took two sacks and fumbled once. He'll get the benefit of a full week of practice heading into this weekend's game, but we don't expect him to fare much better. Vegas' DST is a strong Week 12 fantasy play.

Browns QB Dillon Gabriel sustained a concussion in the first half of Sunday's game vs. the Ravens. QB Shedeur Sanders started the second half and will finish out this game. We'll track Gabriel's progress through the protocol this week, but this remains a QB room to avoid in all fantasy formats.

The Bengals are acquiring QB Joe Flacco from the Browns for a swap of late-round picks, according to multiple reports.

Update: ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that the Bengals "would like" Flacco to start this weekend's game vs. the Packers. "The veteran Flacco is expected to be a quick learner," Schefter adds. We'll keep an eye on the situation, but we'll project Flacco to get the start for now.

Browns QB Joe Flacco stunk in Sunday's loss at Detroit. He went just 16-of-34 passing with no TDs and a pair of INTs. One came on a legitimately nice catch by Lions CB D.J. Reed after WR Jerry Jeudy went down near the sideline. The other looked like a ball that volunteered to sacrifice itself, floating well beyond anyone wearing the same color as the aged QB. Flacco also took three sacks and lost a fumble. His 184 yards marked a third straight game south of 200. Flacco has also finished three straight games short of 59% completion rates, totaled 6 INTs across his four outings, and decreased his passer rating every week:

• 75.2
• 65.0
• 55.6
• 39.3

The Browns are sending QB Kenny Pickett to the Raiders for a fifth-round pick, according to multiple sources. That recoups the pick Cleveland sent to the Eagles to acquire Pickett earlier this offseason.

Rookie QB Shedeur Sanders suffered an oblique strain during Wednesday's practice. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Sanders will not practice Thursday and is unlikely to play in Cleveland’s second preseason game against the Eagles.

"His first two days have been stellar." That's what Browns QBs coach Bill Musgrave said Friday about QB Kenny Pickett, according to ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi. Pickett is competing with Joe Flacco (and maybe the rookies) for the Cleveland starting job. Pickett, Flacco, and third-round pick Dillon Gabriel have received first-team reps so far, though Oyefusi says Pickett has "received a large share" of those reps. That included Pickett taking all first-team reps in Day 1's 11-on-11 drills Wednesday, though HC Kevin Stefanski cautioned not to overrate that.

The Browns selected Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders with the 144th pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Sanders played efficient, winning football across four college seasons. He began his career at Jackson State, where he led his team to a 23-3 record across the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Sanders completed 68% of his passes with 70 TDs vs. 14 INTs. He was named FCS’s top freshman in 2021 and was a finalist for the Walter Payton Award as the top player in FCS in 2022. Sanders then followed his father, Deion, to Colorado. The Buffaloes went 4-8 in his first season but improved to 9-4 this past year. Sanders completed 71.8% of his passes at Colorado, including an FBS-best 74.0% completion rate in 2024. He’s deadly accurate on short and intermediate throws and reads defenses like a pro. But Sanders has average arm strength and lackluster pocket presence. He was sacked 94 times over the last two seasons and ranked 89th among 128 qualifying QBs in pressure-to-sack ratio in 2024. Sanders’ accuracy will shine if he gets good protection as a pro, but it could get ugly if he’s stuck behind a bad offensive line. Ultimately, there just aren’t any elite traits here to get excited about – either in real life or fantasy football.

The Pittsburgh Steelers allegedly have a first-round grade on Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft. Steelers Beat Reporter Gerry Dulac told the Rich Eisen Show that the Steelers have that grade on Dart, but also like Shedeur Sanders. He did not rule out the possibility of the team taking a DL instead of a QB however.

Once considered the potential No. 1 overall pick of the 2025 NFL Draft, QB Shadeur Sanders might need to wait a lot longer to hear his name called. Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer writes that, "it feels like it’d be surprising" if Sanders went in the top 10. It's possible that he falls all the way to the Steelers at pick 21 -- or goes even later.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that Saints QB Derek Carr has a shoulder injury that might cost him the upcoming season.