ESPN Cleveland radio host Tony Rizzo has had enough with the Cleveland Browns quarterback competition. On Tuesday, Rizzo voiced his displeasure with the way that the organization has handled the competition during training camp and even went as far as to say that quarterback Shedeur Sanders should request a trade out of Cleveland.
“If I’m [Shedeur Sanders], I’d respectfully go into that office and go… ‘Thank you for the opportunity, but can I please go somewhere where I have the chance to play,’” Grossie said on the morning show.
“You’re not giving him a chance to start, you’re not, they won’t even let him play the 1s in the practice,” – @TheRealTRizzo on Shedeur in the QB competition. pic.twitter.com/OFyOooyhe6
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) August 19, 2025
Co-host Aaron Goldhammer doesn’t believe that the Browns front office wouldn’t be able to face the repercussions of a potential deal. “I’m sorry. I know they don’t care. If they were to trade Shedeur Sanders now after that preseason performance and he would to be good, no one in this building would survive that.”
Should Shedeur Sanders Request A Trade Out Of Cleveland?
Sanders had a historic slide in the 2025 NFL Draft, but proved that he can compete at the NFL level during his lone preseason start.
While it’s possible that there are teams who like what they saw on film, it’s fair to wonder whether another team would give up anything of significance to acquire the former Heisman Trophy candidate.
Given the state of the Browns’ QB room, Sanders’ best chance to show what we can do in the NFL might be in Cleveland after all.
Despite the way that he’s been treated during training camp, Sanders made the most of his opportunity during the preseason, which should put him in line to at least get a start or two under center this season.
Kenny Pickett has not proven to be the answer at any of his stops in the NFL. Meanwhile, Gabriel’s two-turnover performance was a sign that he might struggle under the bright lights during the regular season.
While Pickett and Gabriel might be first in line, it might not matter for long, especially with the fans and media clamoring for Sanders to get a fair shot to play.
Joe Flacco Projected To Start Seven Games For Browns In 2025
Veteran signal caller Joe Flacco will get the start under center for the Browns regular season opener versus the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7. Cleveland has a very difficult start to the season. After the home opener versus the AFC North-rival Bengals, the Browns will take on the Baltimore Ravens, Green Bay Packers, Detroit Lions, and Pittsburgh Steelers in the first six weeks of the season.
When asked if he expects to be the Browns’ starter for the entire season, Flacco had an interesting response.
“We all know how that works,” he quipped. “That’s everybody in the league, you know. But it’s not really my job to look at it that way.”
Rizzo and Goldhammer set the over-under line on the number of Flacco starts at 6.5 games. Goldhammer took the over, saying that the Browns could turn back to Flacco after getting a better look at some of their younger QBs.
“My concern is it’s going to be the first two, two in the middle, two towards the end, and the season finale,” Goldhammer said.
If Flacco survives the gauntlet at the start of the season, there’s a strong chance that Browns fans won’t get the look at rookies Dillon Gabriel or Sheduer Sanders that they desperately desire.
