The Cleveland Browns quarterback carousel is far from over this summer. The speculation is that the starting gig is going to come down to Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders.
One name that isn’t mentioned very often is Dillon Gabriel. The Browns used a third-round pick to select Gabriel out of Oregon in 2025. A year later, he doesn’t seem to be even mentioned in the running for the starting quarterback gig.
Recently, former NFL scout Daniel Kelly released a list of the most disrespected quarterbacks, and Gabriel’s spot on the list might surprise some people.
“Top 10 Most Disrespected Quarterbacks in the NFL: 2. Dillon Gabriel,” Kelly posted.
Top 10 Most Disrespected Quarterbacks in the NFL:
1. Spencer Rattler
2. Dillon Gabriel
3. Joe Milton III
4. Justin Fields
5. Cam Ward
6. C.J. Stroud
7. Tua Tagovailoa
8. Michael Penix Jr.
9. Bryce Young
10. Dak Prescott— FIRST ROUND MOCK (@firstroundmock) June 6, 2026
Gabriel is second on the list, only to New Orleans Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler, who finishes at the top of the list. The 25-year-old does deserve more respect after a decent showing during his rookie season last season.
During his rookie campaign, Gabriel threw for 937 passing yards with seven touchdowns and two interceptions across 10 games (six starts) with the Browns. During that span, the Browns went 1-5, and Gabriel was replaced by Sanders.
A few months later, Gabriel doesn’t even seem to be in the mix for the QB1 job. Given his size and attributes, Gabriel does profile better as a game-manager type of quarterback. He’s 5’11 and doesn’t blow anyone away with his arm strength.
On the positive side, Gabriel only threw two interceptions, so he has limited turnovers. It’s hard for an offense to score when the quarterback is giving the ball to the other team. Gabriel had a slightly better completion percentage at 59.5 percent compared to 56.5 percent for Sanders.
This defensive unit is strong enough to win games with a game-manager type of quarterback. They just need someone who can get the team down the field without giving the ball to the other team.
Gabriel has said the right things and worked hard, so hopefully he’ll get another chance at some point.
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