The Cleveland Browns were able to keep quarterback Dillon Gabriel on the team by placing him on injured reserve the day rosters were cut down to 53 players. How long he remains with the organization is anybody’s guess.
There is a line of thinking that suggests the Browns view Gabriel as nothing more than a potential backup, but that he is also too valuable to part with. However, there may come a time to get something for him before it’s too late.
With that in mind, Bleacher Report predicts the Browns could make a bold QB trade with the Atlanta Falcons, dealing Gabriel for a late-round draft pick and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Falcons Get: QB Dillon Gabriel
Browns Get: Conditional 2027 7th-Round Pick, QB Tua Tagovailoa
“The Atlanta Falcons have yet to name a starting quarterback, which doesn’t bode particularly well for free agent addition Tua Tagovailoa. The Falcons could look to add another potential bridge quarterback by trading for Cleveland Browns third-stringer Dillon Gabriel. The Falcons could acquire the 2025 third-rounder by surrendering a Day 3 pick and by giving the Browns another reclamation project at quarterback to audition. This isn’t a trade that would rock the playoff picture, but it would impact two teams desperate for a franchise quarterback,” Kristopher Knox wrote.
On the surface, the trade makes sense, at least from the Falcons’ perspective. Atlanta’s head coach is Kevin Stefanski, who reportedly was the driving force behind the Browns’ decision to select Gabriel in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft when he was their head coach.
If Stefanski still holds Gabriel in high regard, he could be the ideal solution to the current quarterback mess in Atlanta. The Falcons are unsure of who their Week 1 starter would be, and even though that would not be Gabriel, he would provide competent play when needed behind oft-injured Michael Penix Jr. or someone else. But the Browns may not be inclined to help out Stefanski with this kind of deal.
There are plenty of other reasons why the Browns also wouldn’t make a trade like this. First of all, they would be parting with a third-round pick who has already started games for them and only get back a seventh-round pick in return. In addition, Tagovailoa has shown this preseason that his career might be over, as he has been downright awful during training camp, and he can become a free agent after the season.
The last thing in the world Cleveland needs is another high-profile distraction in their quarterback room. Plus, adding Tagovailoa would create a roster bind that the Browns just found their way out of when Gabriel was sidelined by a surprising back injury.
If the Falcons and Stefanski do want Gabriel, or the Browns decide to get rid of him, Cleveland should hold out for much more than this proposed offer.
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