'They Could Fuck Up a Free Lunch' | NFL MAILBAG

Across the country, teams are beginning OTA practices, and in some instances, the very first throws of quarterback competitions that will stretch well into the dog days of summer are being made.

Nowhere is the spotlight shining brighter than in Cleveland, where Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, and Shedeur Sanders make up a compellingly confusing quarterback room for a franchise that might have its best chance at finally stopping its never-ending carousel in next spring’s NFL Draft.

So, who survives the carnage? Who gets traded? And is there any logic to the madness? I asked an NFL coach to weigh in, and his answers were candid, hilarious, and downright brutal.

Meanwhile, inside this week’s mailbag, I tackle the most underrated and overrated teams, as they look in mid-May, offer up a downright bold Super Bowl Prediction*, and much more!

Without further ado, let’s get to your questions!

* We at Between The Hashmarks reserve the right to either never in the history of mankind mention this prediction again, as it was all in good fun, or to plaster it across social media posts, TikTok videos, and Instagram reels for the world to see come February if it winds up coming to fruition. Them’s the rules.

Who’s going to win the Quarterback Hunger Games in Cleveland? (Scott Larson on BlueSky)

In the aftermath of Shedeur Sanders’ slide into the fifth round that shocked every NFL observer who hadn’t been communicating with executives and coaches across the league in the months leading up to the NFL Draft, all eyes are on the Browns and the quarterback conundrum they have created for themselves.

If there’s an open quarterback competition on the banks of Lake Erie, it’s shaping up to be a clearance rack of quarterbacks, with Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, and Sanders all vying for the Week 1 starting job.

This, for a franchise that now holds two first-round picks in next spring’s draft, which is expected to be headlined by a much deeper, and far more talented, quarterback class.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski will need to figure out how to split very limited first-team practice reps between Flacco and Pickett, and the even fewer developmental reps between Gabriel and Sanders, if the Browns are going to determine whether either of their rookies have enough upside to pass up the chance of drafting or trading up to draft Arch Manning, Drew Allar, or any of the other heralded quarterbacks in 2026.

“It’s an absolute mess,” a rival NFL quarterbacks coach tells me, of the Browns’ situation, on the condition of anonymity to speak freely. “It’s not shocking with that place.”

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What one rival QB coach told me about Cleveland's mess that just might be the most savage quote of the offseason ...