NFL insider drops update on Browns QB Shedeur Sanders and whether or not he will see the field as a rookie
The Browns have another rookie quarterback they’ll have to think about playing down the road possibly.
Week 5 of the NFL season brought the Cleveland Browns their first look at one of their rookie quarterbacks. Cleveland made the decision to bench QB Joe Flacco after the loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 4 and Dillon Gabriel was handed the keys to the offense in Week 5’s game against the Minnesota Vikings in London. Cleveland was handed a 21-17 loss but Gabriel gave the Browns a turnover-free game, something that they haven’t had this season.
Before the season it was known that Flacco was only going to lead the offense for a select number of games and would be pulled once things went bad. Failing to score 20 points in each of the first four games, along with eight turnovers was enough for Flacco to be pulled. Flacco is still the backup to Gabriel, but the Browns still have rookie QB Shedeur Sanders to evaluate at some point possibly.
Shedeur Sanders is expected to play for the Browns at some point in 2025
“The expectation is that Sanders will play at some point this season when he’s ready,” Ian Rapoport wrote recently. “When he does play, it would be with a full week of practice and a game plan built for him.”
The Browns don’t plan to have Sanders as the backup to Gabriel because they don’t want to force Sanders into action around a game plan that is created for Gabriel, according to Rapoport. Sanders and Gabriel are two very different quarterbacks and that makes sense in terms of being fair to Sanders. Gabriel was the third-round pick by the Browns and has been ahead of Sanders since he was drafted. Sanders was a fifth-round pick who had some ups and downs in the preseason for Cleveland.
Gabriel completed 19-of-33 passes for 190 yards and two touchdowns against the Vikings, which boasts a very good defense coached by Brian Flores. It wasn’t a perfect debut by any means but it was better than the Browns had through four games. Next up for the Browns is the always tough Pittsburgh Steelers. Gabriel will get his second career start on the road in Pittsburgh next Sunday.
Cleveland likely won’t go to Sanders until they need to and that would be due to poor play from Gabriel or an injury. The Browns hold two first-round picks next year and evaluating the current quarterbacks is key with the likelihood that they’ll be drafting another next April.
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