Eagles To Trade Kenny Pickett To Browns

7:09pm: This is not expected to be the only veteran move the Browns make at quarterback. The team is likely still in the market for a vet to join Pickett, cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot tweets. This could drop Pickett to the third-string level quickly, depending on how the Browns proceed in the draft.

4:37pm: Kenny Pickett is headed back to the AFC North. The former Steelers first-rounder spent one season with the Eagles, but he is being traded once again.

Pickett is being dealt to the Browns, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. The Eagles will receive fellow quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson as well as a 2025 fifth-round pick from Cleveland.

The Browns are in historically unprecedented shape at quarterback, having Deshaun Watson‘s guarantees still on the books through 2026. Watson has bombed spectacularly in Cleveland, and the Browns just completed another restructure — one that creates 2025 cap space but balloons his 2026 cap number to $81MM and his dead money number (in the event of a release) to $135.4MM. Cost conservation is more necessary for the Browns at QB.

This, of course, will be Pickett’s second time in two offseasons being dealt. The Browns are quite familiar with the 2022 first-round pick, as he was the Steelers’ primary starter for two seasons. The Steelers bailed on Pickett shortly between their Russell Wilson and Justin Fields pickups last year. Pittsburgh’s Pickett trade haul did include a third-round pick coming back, in a deal sending other selections back to Philly, but the Eagles are moving on ahead of the Pitt alum’s contract year.

Pickett, 27 in June, played in five Eagles games last season and started one. A rib issue sidelined the ex-Steeler, giving way to Tanner McKee, who appears set to have a shot to back up Jalen Hurts in 2025. Pickett was 14 of 24 for 143 yards in a loss to the Commanders, throwing a costly interception but also leading two fourth-quarter scoring drives. Starting for Hurts the following week, Pickett saw a previous rib issue become too much of a hindrance. He did not play again until mop-up time in the NFC championship and Super Bowl LIX.

With the Steelers, Pickett drew immediate scrutiny as an underwhelming Ben Roethlisberger successor. He managed only seven touchdown passes in 13 games as a rookie and threw just six in 12 sophomore-season contests. While Matt Canada’s offense drew criticism (ahead of an ultra-rare in-season Steelers coach dismissal), Pickett did not inspire confidence after some late-game success down the stretch as a rookie. The Steelers benched him for Mason Rudolph late in the 2023 season and were not exactly pleased with how he handled it. Pickett preferred a scenery change after the Wilson arrival, and the Steelers granted it early during the 2024 offseason.

The Browns hold the No. 2 overall pick and have been linked to quarterbacks, along with Abdul Carter and Travis Hunter (whom Cleveland deems a wide receiver). Pickett would not generate much optimism as the Browns’ bridge, making the prospect of another veteran addition logical before the draft decision. Thompson-Robinson holds a ghastly 1-10 TD-INT ratio, having struggled in five starts. The Browns gave the former UCLA starter a few chances but ultimately did not see much production. The Eagles will take a flier, likely as a third-string option, nonetheless.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.