The Cleveland Browns surprised many fans when they selected Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft, as many expected him to fall to the fifth round or later.
Since being drafted, Gabriel has been largely an afterthought since the team also drafted Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round, but one insider recently made a surprising claim about Gabriel.
Chad Johnson recently pointed out that he had heard Sanders was looking great in Browns camp, but ESPN Cleveland’s Tony Grossi shared that he has seen and heard that Gabriel is spinning the ball as well as anyone in camp and is “better at it” than Sanders.
.@ochocinco has heard that Shedeur Sanders has looked different in Browns camp. Is @TonyGrossi hearing the same thing? pic.twitter.com/izyKjLuDYT
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) June 16, 2025
Grossi has repeatedly come across as someone who isn’t thrilled with the Sanders pick, and many likely agree with him, but it’s still June and there is no rush for anyone to make a decision just yet.
The reality is that Gabriel was drafted earlier than Sanders for a reason, and just because Sanders comes with an unprecedented media hype train, that doesn’t mean he should start right away.
He very well could be the fourth-string QB and begin the year on the practice squad, and that might be exactly what he needs at this point in his career.
Gabriel led his team to the No. 1 ranking in the country this past season and made the playoffs, so Browns fans needn’t forget that Sanders is the only capable rookie in town.
Gabriel will get a chance to prove whether or not he can be the long-term solution at QB.
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