In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by New Era:

Yesterday, April 11—a date that will live in infamy—the Browns reunited with QB Joe Flacco, who memorably won 2023 Comeback Player of the Year in his lone season with the team.

And by "lone season," I mean "five games."

And by "five games," I mean "five games in the regular season plus a 45-14 loss in the playoffs."

Still, what a "five games" they were.

In his five regular-season starts with the Browns, Flacco averaged 323.2 yards and 2.6 TDs passing per game. Even in a postseason defeat, Flacco threw for 307 yards and a TD.

At a minimum, he brings experience and competence to the QB room.

But what does Flacco's presence on the Browns mean for what they might do in the draft?

Given that every Saturday edition of the Fantasy Life Newsletter is dedicated to the NFL draft, here are the possible implications of Flacco's return to Cleveland.

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The Browns Will Draft a QB

Let's start here: The addition of Flacco (40 years old) seems to signal that the Browns will not attempt to trade for QB Kirk Cousins (who turns 37 in August), because a QB room with both Flacco and Cousins makes no sense.

The Browns know that they need to get younger at the position.

After signing his $160M extension with the team, EDGE Myles Garrett said this while answering a question about the team's potential plans with the No. 2 pick and the QB position in general: "Any team that's going to go far needs a QB, and one that's young."

So Cousins is out as an option in Cleveland.

But the team can't go into the season with just Flacco and QB Kenny Pickett on the depth chart, because Flacco is too old to be a reliable starter and Pickett is a speculative reclamation project.

But Flacco makes a world of sense as a bridge QB: Someone to mentor a rookie, show him how to be a professional, and maybe even start some games to open the year if the rookie is not ready right away.

And if the rookie is ready? Great, then Flacco can be a strong No. 2 option on the bench.

But Flacco as the Week 1 starter with only Pickett as support?

No. That's not a realistic option. That's something only a very unserious organization would do.

The Browns are flawed, but at least GM Andrew Berry has proven himself in the past to be serious about addressing the team's QB situation. 

The Browns will take a QB in the draft.

When Will the Browns Draft a QB?

This is the question.

They have picks Nos. 2 & 33.

If they want QB Shedeur Sanders (Colorado), they can justifiably take him at No. 2, as he almost certainly won't be there at No. 33.

HC Kevin Stefanski has been highly complimentary of Sanders. If the Browns think he's the QB they want, they would be wise to take him at No. 2, because there's no guarantee that they'd be able to trade back into Round 1 to get him—and QB is by far the most important position in the NFL. 

But after the Colorado showcase last week, GM Andrew Berry (jokingly?) said that he'd like to have both Sanders and his college teammate, WR/CB Travis Hunter, adding: "We’ll take the whole process into mind … and we have the next several weeks to sort out all of the different scenarios."

There's no chance Hunter makes it out of the top 10. Probably not even the top five.

But Sanders could.

So if Berry is trying to "sort out" the "different scenarios," and if he actually wants to try to get both Sanders and Hunter—then he must take Hunter at No. 2, hope that Sanders falls down the board, and then probably use No. 33 and extra draft capital to move back into Round 1 to take Sanders.

But what if another team drafts Sanders?

In that instance, the Browns would probably stay at No. 33 (or maybe trade up a little) and select one of QBs Jaxson Dart (Mississippi), Jalen Milroe (Alabama), and Tyler Shough (Louisville), all of whom had top-30 visits with the team this past Tuesday.

So when will the Browns draft a QB?

Maybe as early as No. 2, maybe later in Round 1, and almost certainly no later than the top of Round 2.

MY UPDATED ROUND 1 MOCK DRAFT

What Does The Prop Market Say?

Travis Hunter is still the odds-on favorite to go No. 2 (-300, DraftKings), whereas Sanders is as long as +1700 (FanDuel), which comes out to a 5.56% implied probability (per our Fantasy Life Odds Calculator). 

In my most recent mock, I still have Sanders going No. 2—and it's one of my favorite draft props—but I must admit that the market and majority of mocks are now against me.

For all my NFL draft props, see our free Fantasy Life bet tracker, which I update regularly.

It seems unlikely that the Browns will take Sanders ahead of Hunter at No. 2.

But the market is still open to the idea of the Browns getting Sanders: They have the fourth-shortest odds to select him (+450 at DraftKings, 18.2% implied probability).

And the market is also still very bullish on over 2.5 QBs going in Round 1 (-350 at Caesars, 77.8%), which could hit if the Browns trade up to select a QB, whether that's Sanders falling down the board or one of the guys they've had in for a top 30 visit.

One way or another, the Browns seem likely to select a hopeful franchise QB in the draft—and the signing of Flacco doesn't change that. If anything, it supports it.

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