The Cleveland Browns have been looking for a quarterback for more than a quarter century. They might have drafted a viable option. It's just not the draft pick everyone is talking about.
Shedeur Sanders is a rare story, a fifth-round pick who has overshadowed every other player selected in the draft. That includes his teammate drafted two rounds earlier, Dillon Gabriel.
That has made for a very strange situation in which Gabriel played well in the preseason and nobody seems to care. All anyone wants to talk about is the player behind Gabriel on the depth chart (and who has been behind Gabriel on the depth chart since they were both drafted).
On another team, perhaps in another season, a third-round quarterback playing as well as Gabriel would have actually gotten some notice.
Dillon Gabriel has a strong preseason
It's telling that the most attention Gabriel has gotten in August, by far, came when he had a comment that he's a competitor and not an entertainer and everyone wondered if he was talking about Sanders. Gabriel said he was actually talking about the media, but the confusion over his quote is the only time he has been talked about extensively this month.
Gabriel looked pretty sharp on the field though. In about three quarters of work after he missed the preseason opener with a hamstring injury, Gabriel was 25 of 37 for 272 yards with a touchdown and an interception. His timing, anticipation and accuracy was notable, especially for a rookie. He was a third-round pick because of his impressive college production and the idea that after playing parts of six college seasons with three different schools, he could come in and be a quick processor and be immediately ready to play in the NFL. That looked like the case in preseason.
Gabriel is not very big and does not have a fantastic arm, and perhaps that always holds him back from being a regular NFL starter. But the Browns catered the offense to his strengths and weaknesses with a lot of quick throws. Gabriel executed the plan well. He played so well there's a question over whether he should be Joe Flacco's backup ahead of Kenny Pickett to start the season. Gabriel made a good case for it to be him.
Considering the woeful history of the Browns drafting, signing and trading for quarterbacks, it's actually a pretty cool developing story.
Gabriel ahead of Sanders on depth chart
Sanders struggled badly in the preseason finale, though it wasn't all his fault nor should it have been entirely unexpected. Sanders played most of the second half with linemen who have already been cut, and he couldn't get much going. He's a fifth-round rookie who has been fourth on the depth chart since he was drafted; having a bad preseason game isn't ideal for him but it comes with the territory with players in Sanders' situation. He'll likely be on the roster and continue to develop, as most late-round rookie picks do. Sanders seems to understand that better than the many analysts and fans who turned the second half of a third preseason game into a mashup of conspiracy theories and rage.
"There’s a lot to learn from this preseason, but I’m really thankful for the opportunity to be out there," Sanders said in an Instagram post. "Day by day, rep by rep, I’ll keep learning and getting better."
Gabriel's rise obviously affects Sanders — if the Browns do keep four quarterbacks, Sanders is clearly No. 4 and if there are quarterback changes during the regular season Gabriel would get starts before Sanders — but it's also its own story. While the hype machine talks about Sanders, the Browns have every reason to be excited for what they've seen in their third-round rookie quarterback. It will be fun to see if that was more than a preseason blip, and the Browns beat the odds to find a future starting quarterback in the third round.
When and if Gabriel gets a chance to make a start this season, the story will probably shift to Sanders and why he's not getting that opportunity. That will be unfortunate because Gabriel went out and earned earned his spot on the Browns' depth chart with two strong performances. At some point he might actually get some of the spotlight to himself.
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