The Cleveland Browns are stuck with a bleak quarterback room in 2026, with Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel, and Deshaun Watson competing for the starting job.
But the future of the QB position might be looking bright. With a stacked 2027 NFL Draft class, the Browns might finally be able to find a franchise QB. However, there might be a star QB already on their roster, and it's not Sanders.
As ESPN's Jordan Reid and Daniel Oyefusi highlighted, the Browns' rookie QB Taylen Green's ceiling is incredibly high, and Cleveland might have a franchise QB better than Sanders already on their roster.
Browns' Taylen Green has an incredibly high ceiling
"A lot of development is needed," Reid writes, "but a sound plan could result in massive payoff down the road."
Green is a raw quarterback prospect who has some massive accuracy issues. He might not be ready to start an NFL game just yet, but there is one thing he has that the other Browns' QBs don't: potential.
He ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine and is an overall athletic QB who could be a difference maker for the Browns in the future.
But that future won't come until after the 2026 season, as Oyefusi notes, "Green should spend his rookie season developing behind the scenes."
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Andrew Berry and Todd Monken will have to be patient with Green, but if they are patient and help him develop, Green might turn into one of the best QBs in the league with his sky-high upside.
Green has an incredibly high ceiling due to his athletic upside. If he can just get better as a passer, which is no easy task, then Green might have a case as an elite QB in the NFL.
This "massive payoff" that could come for the Browns is well worth trying to reach. If he doesn't work out, it was a late Day 3 pick used to make such an attempt.
But if he does reach his potential as a passer while maintaining his elite athleticism, then there would be few QBs with the upside of Green, with Sanders almost certainly not matching the ceiling of Green.
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