Shedeur Sanders and the Browns’ quarterback question: a spring meeting that could reshape the room
At the league meeting in Arizona, the Cleveland Browns’ quarterback future was discussed in the plain, careful language of roster-building—but it landed with the weight of a competition announcement. With shedeur sanders having closed last season as the starter, Browns General Manager Andrew Berry still said it is “wholly realistic” the team adds another quarterback this offseason, keeping every route open and signaling the room remains unsettled.
What did Andrew Berry say about adding a quarterback this offseason?
Andrew Berry, the Browns’ general manager, told reporters that it is “wholly realistic” Cleveland will add another quarterback to the roster this offseason. Speaking from the league meeting in Arizona, Berry framed the possibility as part of a broader approach: the team is open to all avenues of acquiring a quarterback, and it already has a picture of the kind of player it would like to add.
Berry emphasized the Browns’ “lean” if they do add someone: “Our lean would be if we do add someone to the quarterback room, it would be someone who’s a younger player most likely. ” He also added uncertainty about timing and decisions still to come, noting he can’t state that definitively because he does not know what the next couple of weeks will hold.
Just as important as the acquisition itself is the expectation he set for anyone brought in. Berry described a straightforward standard for roster additions: competition. “Anyone that we bring in at any spot on the roster, our thought is that they’re competing. They’re competing to play, ” he said, adding that the team brings in players because there is something it likes in their skill set, and it expects them “to work harder. ”
Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel, and the quarterback room already in place
The Browns are not speaking from a position of emptiness at the position. Berry’s comments come in a quarterback landscape where shedeur sanders finished last season as Cleveland’s starter, and where fellow 2025 draftee Dillon Gabriel also started games for the team. Deshaun Watson, meanwhile, missed the entire season after tearing his Achilles twice, but Berry noted he is also “in the equation. ”
The human reality inside that depth chart is a set of overlapping timelines. A starter who closed last season, another young quarterback who has already started games, and a veteran recovering from a season lost to injury can all exist on the same roster, but not without tension. Berry did not offer promises, and he did not close doors—he described a process that keeps the room in motion, where additions are made with the expectation that someone will push, and someone will respond.
That posture also clarifies what this offseason could feel like for the quarterbacks who are already there. The front office isn’t presenting stability as an endpoint; it is presenting competition as the organizing principle. Berry’s words do not single out any one player for demotion or elevation, but they do reinforce that starting the season as the presumed No. 1 is different from finishing last season as the starter—and that the Browns are leaving room for the next decision to emerge rather than be declared.
Why Ty Simpson is on Cleveland’s radar—and what comes next
One of the specific names tied to Cleveland’s offseason quarterback thinking is Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson. Berry said Simpson is still on the Browns’ radar and that he plans to spend more time with him before the draft. “I have spent time with Ty. I think that’s obvious, and we’ll continue to do so. But I think he has a bright NFL future, ” Berry said while discussing Simpson.
Berry also indicated the Browns have already met with Simpson. The team’s interest, as described, is not casual; it is active enough to include further evaluation time ahead of the draft. Simpson is also described as being “in the running to be the second quarterback selected, ” placing him among the more prominent options the Browns could consider if they choose to add a quarterback through the draft.
The broader story here is not simply whether Cleveland selects a quarterback, but how the team is structuring its decision-making: Berry says all acquisition routes are open, the preference leans young, and the expectation for any addition is immediate competition. That framework makes the next couple of weeks consequential even without a definitive declaration—because it suggests the Browns are preparing for multiple outcomes at once.
Outside evaluators have also been drawn into the debate. NFL draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. previously did not think the Browns were in the market because they had Shedeur Sanders, but Berry’s comments point in the opposite direction. The mismatch underscores a familiar offseason reality: the team’s internal posture can differ sharply from external assumptions, and in this case the Browns are signaling that having a recent starter does not automatically close the door on adding another quarterback.
Image caption (alt text): Andrew Berry addresses the Browns’ quarterback plans after shedeur sanders closed last season as the starter.
