The Cleveland Browns have historically stocked solid backup quarterbacks on their depth chart under general manager Andrew Berry. First, it was Case Keenum, then Jacoby Brissett (who can be argued as a starter), and now for the second straight season after leaving and even starting games for the Tennessee Titans, Joshua Dobbs will also serve in the backup capacity as he did a year ago during the suspension of Deshaun Watson.
Both Keenum and Brissett were viewed as top-tier backup quarterbacks, but how is Dobbs viewed as he is slated to back up Watson in 2023? Sports Illustrated’s MMQB ranked all 32 backup quarterbacks, and Dobbs fell 19th in the league. Here is what SI’s Gilbert Manzano had to say about Dobbs:
“Dobbs lost his first two career starts with Tennessee last season, but he still flashed at times, earning him a one-year deal to return to the Browns as Deshaun Watson’s backup. The 2017 fourth-round pick by the Steelers was cut by Cleveland last November before getting a shot with the Titans as the team pushed for a playoff spot. Dobbs has a career 58.8% completion rate with two touchdowns and two interceptions.”
Brissett fell as the second-best backup in the NFL under just Andy Dalton, but a real case could be made for the former Browns’ quarterback being the top spot starting option in the NFL. Hopefully, the Browns will not have to rely on Dobbs the way they did Brissett a year ago as he helps rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson get up to speed in 2023.
