You won't believe how many QBs the Browns have under contract after Joe Flacco trade

The Cleveland Browns pulled off a surprising trade, sending veteran quarterback Joe Flacco to the division rival Cincinnati Bengals. Flacco started the first four games for the Browns this season, and now he will be the Bengals' starter until Joe Burrow comes back.

With Flacco off the roster, Dillon Gabriel and Sheduer Sanders are the only quarterbacks on the 53-man roster. Bailey Zappe is on the practice squad, but the Browns quarterback room is now one of the youngest in the league.

However, Cleveland has a ton of money on the books invested in their quarterback room. As Michael Ginnitti of Spotrac shared on Twitter/X, the Browns have a ridiculous amount of quarterbacks on their books this season. Between departed veterans, backups, injured players, and those on the active roster, Cleveland has too many quarterbacks on their books this season.

The Browns are paying eight quarterbacks this season, and only three can play in week 6

Spotrac's numbers have the Browns paying eight quarterbacks this season, with Gabriel and Sanders as the only two on the active roster, and Zappe as the emergency third quarterback.

Other than those three, Flacco joins three other quarterbacks with dead cap hits this season. Jameis Winston has a dead cap hit of $2.2 million, while Dorian Thompson-Robinson has a dead cap hit of $171,000. Kenny Pickett, whom the Browns traded for, then traded away, has a dead cap hit of just $8,000.

Flacco's dead cap hit for 2025 is $999,000, and in 2026, it will jump up to $1.4 million on the books for Cleveland.

But the most pricey quarterback on their roster is Deshaun Watson, who is on the PUP list and will most likely not play this season, and is costing the Browns $35.9 million this season.

More: Browns QB depth chart: Where Dillon Gabriel, Shedeur Sanders stand after Joe Flacco traded to Bengals

Of the eight quarterbacks the Browns are paying this season, half aren't on the team anymore. Flacco is with the Bengals, Thompson-Robinson is a free agent, Pickett is with the Las Vegas Raiders, and Winston is with the New York Giants.

The Browns are well known for their quarterback turnover, and this list of quarterbacks the Browns are paying this season is a list that's way too long.

Cleveland needs to find their quarterback of the future, and hopefully, it's one of Gabriel or Sanders; otherwise, the eight quarterbacks the Browns have under contract might grow in the coming years, further indicating the quarterback woes of the Browns.

More Browns News:

• Browns’ Andrew Berry, Kevin Stefanski’s ‘youth evaluation’ plan delivers Shedeur Sanders' long-awaited chance
• Joe Flacco trade winners and losers: Ja'Marr Chase, Shedeur Sanders headline impact of bizarre Browns-Bengals deal
• Dillon Gabriel debut grades: Browns rookie QB proves he's a gamer despite loss to Vikings
• Browns' Quinshon Judkins matches Nick Chubb in Cleveland RB history with rookie record