Cleveland Browns lose quarterback to New York Jets

The Cleveland Browns will be moving on from one of their quarterbacks.

This season, fired Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski needed to utilize three different starting quarterbacks to reach the finish line on another losing season.

The quarterback that spent most of the season on the practice squad and occasionally served as a backup, Bailey Zappe, will not be with the Browns moving forward.

On Monday, Zappe signed a future contract with the New York Jets.

Veteran QB Bailey Zappe is signing a futures deal with the Jets, per source. pic.twitter.com/xVrX6oIrko
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 12, 2026

Originally drafted by the Patriots, Zappe defeated the Browns in 2022 prior to being waived by New England in 2023 and 2024.

After being waived by the Patriots for the second time, Zappe signed to the Kansas City Chiefs practice squad. The Browns added Zappe to their active roster in 2024 following Deshaun Watson’s season-ending Achilles injury. He started Cleveland’s Week 18 game against the Baltimore Ravens.

The Browns lost Zappe’s lone start with the team 35-10 and he threw two interceptions in the defeat.

History repeated itself for Zappe, who was waived by the Chiefs in 2025 after signing a one-year deal over the offseason. He wound back up with the Browns, where he shared a quarterback room with Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders once the team traded Kenny Pickett to the Las Vegas Raiders for a fifth-round pick.

The Kansas City to Cleveland cycle will finally seemingly break for Zappe, who will get a fresh start with the Jets.

Still just 26, the Browns certainly valued having Zappe in the room with their young quarterbacks this season.

He’s played in 15 career games over three seasons in the NFL, throwing 12 touchdown passes compared to 14 interceptions.

Why didn't the Browns bring back Zappe?

Zappe’s time in Cleveland likely expired as the team’s offensive identity is set for a new chapter. After the Browns fired Stefanski, general manager Andrew Berry promised to use more resources to rebuild the offensive side of the football.

Stefanski had valued Zappe’s familiarity with Cleveland’s offense as he was elevated to the active roster several times during the team’s 2025 campaign due to soreness from one of the rookie quarterbacks or unreadiness to play if needed.

Going into next season, the Browns are set to have Sanders, Gabriel and Watson in their quarterback room. They’ll likely add some competition to that mix with a new head coach leading the way into 2026.

Berry likely understands that Sanders and Gabriel are enough project quarterbacks for one organization to handle. Even Watson coming off of back-to-back Achilles tendon surgeries is a bit of a project, even though he’s a former MVP candidate that was paid $230 million fully guaranteed.

Expect the Browns to take more calculated swings this offseason in order to solve their ongoing search for a franchise quarterback.