Browns make stunning Kenny Pickett trade to Raiders as backup quarterback role remains wide open

Shedeur Sanders said that he "put in the work" in order to make the Cleveland Browns’ 53-man roster. Jason McIntyre discusses the Browns’ QB situation and if Sanders can make an impact after avoiding the cut.

The Cleveland Browns are not carrying four quarterbacks on their 53-man roster after all, following a stunning trade on Monday night.

The Browns dealt veteran Kenny Pickett to the Las Vegas Raiders in exchange for a 2026 fifth-round NFL Draft pick.

The Raiders were desperate for a backup quarterback to Geno Smith, whom they traded for earlier this offseason with the Seattle Seahawks to reunite him with his old head coach, Pete Carroll. Aidan O’Connell fractured his wrist during the Raiders’ preseason finale, sidelining him for 6–8 weeks.

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Cleveland Browns quarterback Kenny Pickett (8) during mini camp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus on June 12, 2025. (Ken Blaze-Imagn Images)

O’Connell was expected to back up Smith this season, but that lengthy absence forced Las Vegas to look elsewhere. Carroll mentioned wanting someone with starting experience, and the Raiders get that in the fourth-year man out of Pitt.

Pickett has 25 starts under his NFL belt, going 15–10 over that span with the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, he couldn’t solidify the starting job there, ultimately leading to a trade to the Philadelphia Eagles before the 2024 season. It was there that Pickett backed up Jalen Hurts on the Eagles’ way to a Super Bowl LIX victory last season.

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Pickett was then traded from Philadelphia to Cleveland, as the Browns were assembling their quarterback room with Deshaun Watson sidelined by a torn