It’s pretty apparent that the Cleveland Browns will be reshaping their quarterback room for the 2025 season with Deshaun Watson likely out for the entire season and the belief that the offense will revert back to the “Stefanski Style Offense”.

As they begin the process of reshaping the room, Dorian Thompson-Robinson will likely be on the bubble during training camp and Jameis Winston and Bailey Zappe are heading towards becoming unrestricted free agents.

It’s likely they’ll sign at least two new quarterbacks to the roster and the expectation that they will draft one in April’s NFL Draft. Here are five options the team should consider pursuing in free agency.

Jameis Winston

I know everyone expects that a Winston return to be unlikely, but the door isn’t completely shut yet. The veteran quarterback was well liked in the locker room and while the interceptions were a big issue, the offense averaged 18.6 points per game compared to 12.8 points per game when Winston wasn’t starting.

The Browns have gone two straight seasons where they’ve been 31st and 32nd in offensive turnovers, something that will definitely part of the discussions about whether or not they want to bring Winston back, who is aggressive when throwing the ball downfield.

Jimmy Garoppolo

Once the apple of Browns media and the fanbase’s eye back during the 1-31 days and when New England decided to trade him to appease Tom Brady, Jimmy Garoppolo has been on a whirlwind of a career.

The 11-year veteran spent 5.5 seasons with the San Francisco 49ers as the starting quarterback posting a 38-17 record as a starter leading the team to a Super Bowl appearance in 2019-20 and an NFC Championship Game appearance in 2021-22.

After a failed season with the Raiders, Garoppolo has spent this year backing up Matthew Stafford with the Rams starting Week 18 after the Rams clinched a playoff berth.

With his familiarity in the Shanahan/Kubiak style offense that Stefanski has also run, Garoppolo could be one of the better available options. His role in being a bridge is something unfamiliar to him, as he was in that role in San Francisco when he was supposed to be the bridge to Trey Lance and then was the eventual bridge to Brock Purdy.

Andy Dalton

Dalton is no stranger to the AFC North as he spent his first nine seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, leading them to four consecutive playoff appearances although he never posted a postseason victory.

Since he was replaced by Joe Burrow, Dalton has spent his time as a journeyman quarterback with stops in Dallas, New Orleans and most recently with the Carolina Panthers where he made five starts in 2024 when the team benched Bryce Young. Dalton completed 66.3% of his passes for 989 yards, seven touchdowns to six interceptions before Young took back over the starting role in Week 8.

Mac Jones

The former first-round pick got off to a great start in his rookie season finishing second in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting and leading the Patriots to a 10-7 record and a playoff berth in 2021. In the two seasons after that, Jones had an 8-17 record as a starter throwing 24 touchdowns to 23 interceptions. New England shipped him to Jacksonville after the 2023 season.

Jones got to start eight games after Trevor Lawrence got sidelined with several injuries, throwing for 1,672 yards, eight touchdowns to eight interceptions. He wouldn’t be a favorite signing but if you look back to his rookie year, he got to lean on a solid running game (Patriots ranked 8th in rushing in 2021) and tried to limit Jones’ mistakes. A Stefanski style offense could be a solid fit for Jones to try and resurrect his NFL career.

Kirk Cousins

This is of course the obvious choice for most Browns fans this offseason, but I put him at the bottom of the list because he isn’t a free agent just yet.

Despite the claims of Falcons General Manager Terry Fontenot that they have no problem keeping Cousins on the roster, it’s widely expected that they’ll move on before March 17, when Cousins is due a $10 million roster bonus. Cousins should have his options but the fit with Cleveland seems ideal.

Cousins and Stefanski have history together dating back to their time together in Minnesota when Stefanski was the offensive coordinator during the 2019 season. Cousins threw for 3,603 yards, 26 touchdowns and only six interceptions during that season and led the Vikings to the Divisional Round of the playoffs.