American Football
Will Dillon Gabriel reclaim the Browns' QB job from Shedeur Sanders once he's healthy?
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When rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel went down with a concussion in the Cleveland Browns’ Week 11 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, it opened the door for Shedeur Sanders to make his NFL debut.
Head coach Kevin Stefanski has already stated which of the two will start once both are healthy, but given Gabriel’s uneven play since taking the job from the now-departed Joe Flacco, nothing is set in stone.
Here, I present the case for both players and analyse how the situation could unfold.
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The case for and against Gabriel
Gabriel had started five straight games prior to Sunday. In that span, he completed 99 of 170 passes (a 58.2% completion rate) and threw six touchdowns to just two interceptions.
Those numbers aren’t egregious by rookie standards, especially when you factor in that the Browns’ offensive line has allowed 29 sacks, the ninth-most in the league - and, per PFF, Gabriel was responsible for only four of them.
And when you consider that his top target, Jerry Jeudy, leads the NFL in dropped passes, Gabriel’s performance doesn’t look quite as bleak.
Stefanski wasted no time declaring that once Gabriel clears concussion protocol, he will regain the starting job.
However, Gabriel’s inability to push the ball downfield - reflected in his 34th-ranked 5.1 yards-per-attempt - raises fundamental questions about whether he can ignite a floundering Browns offense.
At best, he’s playing it safe, perhaps operating within a scheme designed to minimise mistakes. At worst, he’s avoiding the kinds of downfield risks that might have changed the outcome of the four losses he took between Weeks 5 and 10.
Pulling the rug now, just one game removed from a two-touchdown, zero-interception outing - and despite his 70% completion rate against the Ravens before the injury - might appear harsh to some, not least Gabriel himself.
On the other hand, what exactly do the Browns have to lose besides denting Gabriel’s pride? At 2–8, the season is already a write-off, and it would benefit Cleveland’s front office to get a real look at what Sanders can offer well before next year’s draft arrives.
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Ring MagazineThe case for and against Sanders
Sanders had a rough start to his NFL career, completing just four of 16 passes for a 25% completion rate with no touchdowns and one interception.
Following the game, the 23-year-old was his own harshest critic.
"I don't think I played good at all. I think there's a lot of things we need to look at during the week and just get comfortable with, even throwing routes with Jerry [Jeudy] and throwing routes with all those guys.
"I think that was my first ball to him all year. But other than that, I just think overall we’ve got to go into next week and understand we have a week to prepare stuff I like to do."
His comments raised an obvious question: why hadn’t Sanders gotten any first-team reps in practice?
Stefanski addressed the criticism, telling reporters, "When your starter’s a rookie, those are very valuable reps."
Assuming Gabriel misses a game, as often happens after a concussion, it will be interesting to see whether Sanders looks more composed with a full week of preparation.
If he starts and plays at a high level, it could spark a genuine quarterback controversy in Cleveland, but to do that, he would need to produce plays like these on a more consistent basis.
He would also need to heed the sage advice of his teammate Myles Garrett.
Beyond what happens on the field, Sanders will also need to show growth in his maturity - an area where he faced plenty of criticism both before and after the draft.
Final word
All eyes now turn to Gabriel’s recovery and the performance of whoever lines up under center on November 23, when the Browns travel to Allegiant Stadium to face the Las Vegas Raiders.
Until then, the only certainty is that this saga will continue until one player makes himself irreplaceable.
