With one week away from the NFL's 53-man roster deadline, the Cleveland Browns have decisions to make at the quarterback position. Saturday's preseason finale against the Los Angeles Rams will be last opportunity for the coaching staff and front office to evaluate their four quarterbacks -- Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders -- who coach Kevin Stefanski says will all be available to play in the team's final preseason game. 

Stefanski mentioned the timeline for naming a Week 1 starter is this week. Not only is naming QB1 important for Stefanski, but the Browns also must decide if they're keeping four quarterbacks on their roster or moving on from one player in the group.

"I think we'll let it play out as we get closer to the cut down," Stefanski said. "Those are all conversations that we are always having, but those are tough decisions. You know, I'd like to keep everybody, but [it's] not realistic."

Cleveland's depth chart projection heading into the season comes down to two important -- do the Browns want keep both rookies and will the franchise decide to move forward with all four players at the position. With that in mind, here are two projections on how the depth chart could shake out:

If the Browns keep four quarterbacks ...

1. Joe Flacco

The second quarterback to sign with the Browns this offseason after the team failed to get Russell Wilson, Flacco has not played in either of Cleveland's first two preseason games -- so it's obvious he's the likely starter on Sept. 7 against Cincinnati unless there's a sizable trade offer for his services. Flacco was the first player to take first-team reps during OTAs and received the lion's share of starter reps in recent weeks with Pickett dealing with a hamstring injury. Flacco's the overwhelming favorite to be Stefanski's QB1 choice.

2. Kenny Pickett

Pickett suffered the hamstring strain in July and has not been a full participant in practice since for precautionary reasons. Pickett was the first quarterback acquisition this offseason for the Browns after Cleveland completed a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for Dorian Thompson-Robinson. However, he hasn't been able to showcase his talent yet given the hamstring situation.

3. Dillon Gabriel

The third-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft made his preseason debut in Saturday's contest with the Eagles,finishing 13 of 18 for 143 yards with an interception, which was returned for a 75-yard touchdown by Andrew Mukuba, ending his day with a 72.2 passer rating. 

"We have to protect players from themselves," Stefanski said, after waiting until the last moment to name Gabriel the starter over the weekend. "Sometimes guys want to play so bad. You just have to make sure they can protect themselves so they can go perform. That's all it was. Just getting as close to kickoff as we can to make a prudent decision for the young man."

The Browns reportedly received multiple trade offers for Gabriel during the draft, but rejected them all.

4. Shedeur Sanders

The fifth-round pick did not play against Philadelphia with an oblique strain after throwing a pair of touchdown passes during Cleveland's preseason opener against Carolina. It's the best any Browns quarterback has looked over two preseason games. The injury suffered during a joint practice last week came at a bad time for Sanders, who was doing his best to leap Gabriel in the quarterback pecking order.

If the Browns keep both rookies ...

1. Joe Flacco

The veteran is not Cleveland's long-term option, but he was never signed to be that for the franchise. The bridge to a younger player, Flacco's job will be to execute the offense well enough to give this team a chance in 2025. Pickett's hamstring injury leaves him as an unknown of sorts if Cleveland decides to go with three quarterbacks this fall (including both rookies). Pickett's last extensive playing time came in 2023 when he tossed six touchdown passes over 12 starts in 2023, the lowest total in the NFL. Pickett's in the final year of his rookie deal.

2. Dillon Gabriel

The fact that Cleveland took the former Oregon standout in the third round and had no plans on taking another signal caller later shows that general manager Andrew Berry and this franchise believes in his abilities. Sanders was on the board two rounds later as a "value" pick according to the Browns. If there are two quarterbacks who feel like locks at this point to be on the roster at the start of the season, it's Flacco and Gabriel.

3. Shedeur Sanders

If all four quarterbacks do play in Saturday's preseason finale, Sanders needs to ascend above the rest to give the decision-makers something to think about before next week's final 53-man roster update. The bad news for Sanders is that if the Browns want to see more from Pickett, the former Colorado star could be a roster casualty. The franchise may also decide to put Pickett or Sanders on injured reserve to keep them within the organization if moving forward with three players this season is the plan under center.