Overview

• Head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed Joe Flacco as the Week 1 starter with rookie Dillon Gabriel as the backup and Shedeur Sanders dressing as the game-day emergency third quarterback.
• Cleveland signed veteran Bailey Zappe to the practice squad for insurance, retaining Sanders as the No. 3 option on game days.
• Travis Kelce urged the Browns to start Sanders on the New Heights podcast, while Jason Kelce backed the staff’s decision to play the quarterbacks they believe give Cleveland the best chance to win.
• Stefanski rejected claims the team ‘sabotaged’ Sanders and said he remains committed to the rookie’s development like all first-year players.
• Beat reporter Mary Kay Cabot reported Deshaun Watson is progressing on PUP with a potential late-October reevaluation that could influence the quarterback picture later in the season.