The Cleveland Browns find themselves in a familiar position heading into the 2025 campaign, selling fans on a bright future for the organization that they can’t fully guarantee.
That said, Cleveland did made an interesting decision in the most recent NFL draft, taking two legitimate swings at the quarterback position when most teams traditionally only take one.
The first was Dillon Gabriel in the late third round, which was earlier than the majority of draft analysts had him coming off of the board. On Wednesday, June 4, the Browns made their marriage to Gabriel official.
“Putting it in ink 🖊️,” the Browns wrote on their official X account. “We’ve signed Dillon Gabriel.”
Gabriel’s deal will pay him $6.22 million over the next four years, which will prove an exceptional value if he is able to obtain the starting job at some point in the relatively near future, hold onto it and make the Browns’ offense successful — all of which combined is a considerable ask based on the team’s history over the last few decades.
Shedeur Sanders Showing Potential Early in Browns Preseason Workouts
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
On the same day Gabriel finalized his deal, it was fellow rookie and fifth-round pick Shedeur Sanders who won the day during OTAs.
The Browns released some tape of Sanders — currently the fourth-string quarterback behind Kenny Pickett, Gabriel and Joe Flacco — in which he showed some of the skills that had the majority of draft analysts predicting him as a first-round pick.
When you watch all the clips of Shedeur Sanders, you see why his tape said he was a 1st Round QB. He plays with NFL timing and rhythm, reads with his feet, plays ahead of the defense, has more than enough arm strength and he knows how to layer the ball. 🔥
“When you watch all the clips of Shedeur Sanders, you see why his tape said he was a 1st Round QB,” analyst and former NFL QB Robert Griffin III wrote online. “He plays with NFL timing and rhythm, reads with his feet, plays ahead of the defense, has more than enough arm strength and he knows how to layer the ball 🔥.”
Dillon Gabriel and/or Shedeur Sanders Could Start for Browns at Some Point in 2025
GettyQuarterback Dillon Gabriel of the Cleveland Browns.
Selecting two incredibly successful collegiate quarterbacks essentially one round and a handful of extra picks apart gives the Browns a couple of shots at landing a potential franchise QB who can play at value for the next four years.
The San Francisco 49ers found such a player by selecting Brock Purdy with the last pick in the 2022 draft, which allowed the team to pay the players around him big money early on and helped the Niners earn their way to an NFC Championship Game and a Super Bowl appearance in consecutive seasons.
However, that strategy is something of a double-edged sword because Gabriel and Sanders will be competition for multiple years to come, assuming the Browns don’t cut or trade one of them at some point during this preseason or the upcoming campaign. That will likely result in media and fans taking sides on which player is better, in turn creating pressure for whomever is higher on the depth chart/starting should he struggle.
Neither rookie is likely to start Week 1 in 2025, which is almost certain to be a rebuilding year for Cleveland. But if serious struggles and/or injury befall either Pickett, Flacco or both, it’s possible that Gabriel and/or Sanders gets serious run during their first professional campaign.
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