The Cleveland Browns have shown some positive developments through three weeks of the 2025 season, but it’s clear this team still needs to find its long-term solution at quarterback before it has any chance of being a legitimate contender.
Joe Flacco has been adequate, but he has five turnovers already, and it’s likely the Browns will make a switch to Dillon Gabriel at some point to evaluate him ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft, where one analyst recently linked the team to three different prospects.
Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine recently wrote an article connecting some of the top QB prospects in the ’26 class to the Browns and working through which ones would potentially make the most sense for the Browns.
“The 2026 quarterback class has been short on signature performances, but Fernando Mendoza’s game against Illinois is sure to build his draft hype. His ability to operate an offense and make the right post-snap reads to keep the ball out of harm’s way are impressive. It’s the exact skill set that would make Kevin Stefanski happy as the Browns look for a franchise quarterback. Mendoza has the size and arm strength to succeed in Cleveland. Allar has similar physical tools, but he has to prove that he can master some of the finer points of the position. Garrett Nussmeier isn’t quite the same physical fit for playing in Cleveland, but he continues to impress as an efficient passer whose dad was an NFL offensive coordinator,” Ballentine wrote.
The class generated a ton of hype over the summer, but a month into the college football season, Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza looks to be the only one who has elevated his stock so far.
Flacco hasn’t started a full regular season’s worth of games since 2017, and it’s unrealistic to expect him to do so as he nears his 41st birthday, so if Gabriel isn’t convincing enough to get the Browns to pass on a QB in 2026, it’s highly likely one of these big names will be on the team next training camp.
There are plenty of options and a lot of time to let things play out, but with a pair of first-round picks at their disposal, the Browns will have every chance to grab a franchise QB next year.
Whether that’s Mendoza, Nussmeier, Allar, or somebody else remains anybody’s guess.
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