The Cleveland Browns entered the 2025 season with a big need at the quarterback position. Almost an entire season has gone by, and the situation hasn’t changed.
Dillon Gabriel might not have the makings of an NFL quarterback, and Shedeur Sanders, while more electric and confident, might be years away from being ready. There’s still a chance that he can be the guy, but he ranks either last or close to last in several metrics.
Then again, that doesn’t mean the Browns should go out of their way to get Fernando Mendoza, this year’s consensus QB1 in the 2026 NFL draft.
At least, that’s how Lance Reisland feels.
In his latest column, he explained why Mendoza isn’t the best choice for the Browns right now.
“With the current state of the Browns’ offensive roster and the slight physical limitations of Mendoza, he is not the best fit for the organization right now. From my perspective, before you ever talk about taking a quarterback with the number one pick you have to evaluate the entire roster and the overall organizational alignment. Quarterback is the most important position in football, but it is also the most dependent on the 10 players around him. If a team cannot protect the quarterback, if the receivers cannot consistently separate, and if the coaching staff does not have answers against pressure, you are putting any young quarterback in a difficult situation,” Reisland wrote.
Truth be told, it’s hard to disagree with him. Mendoza is a fairly decent prospect, and he might turn out to be a star, but his ceiling doesn’t seem to be as high as to justify trading up to get him.
The Browns aren’t just a quarterback away. They desperately need to add high-end talent to the wide receiver room, and they must also revamp the offensive line to make sure they can protect whoever is behind center.
As such, they might be better off either trading for a bridge quarterback like Mac Jones or maybe even giving Sanders a year to prove what he’s got.
If they’re still not convinced after one season, the quarterback class of 2027 should be much deeper, with players like Arch Manning, D.J. Lagway, C.J. Carr, Dylan Raiola, Julian Sayin, and LaNorris Sellers as potential options.
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