Dillon Gabriel’s Future Is Not in NFL While Kevin Stefanski Confirms Shedeur Sanders’ Fate, Says Browns Insider

“It’s life,” Dillon Gabriel said on Aug. 4. “You want certain results, but sometimes it doesn’t go your way…” Coming from a rookie fighting for air in a crowded quarterback room. Gabriel’s hamstring tweak didn’t just sideline him. It stalled a quiet climb up Kevin Stefanski’s unofficial depth chart, where first-team reps had just started coming his way.

Before the injury, he’d shown flashes that explained the pre-draft buzz, even if red-zone accuracy slipped. But every day on the sideline now hands more ground to veterans, and Stefanski’s aware that the clock is ticking. The Browns have a decision looming. If Gabriel proves ready for QB2, they can move Joe Flacco or Kenny Pickett. If not, they might still be stuck carrying four quarterbacks into Week 2.

In Cleveland’s win-now mode, that call could define not just Gabriel’s rookie year. Whether his future even lives in the NFL or not. And for 92.3 The Fan podcast, hosts Ken Carman and Anthony Lima, the answer might be no. Carman didn’t bother softening the edges. “I can’t see a world where Dillon Gabriel is a franchise quarterback,” he said, before taking the conversation a step further. “Were you planning on taking Dylan Gabriel in the third round to someday turn him into a fourth round pick where you take, like, if that’s his floor, like, where were you taking him in the third round to maybe get another third out of it? That never made sense,” he added.

To him, the pick felt like one of those “smartest guys in the room” moves. The kind where front offices talk about quarterbacks as “currency.” And the stinger? “You can only play one quarterback,” he reminded. In other words, every swing on a longshot passer is an opportunity cost the roster might feel all season. Through nine days of camp, the stats haven’t helped Gabriel’s case. His completion rate is stuck at 54.9%. The lowest in the room. Meanwhile, Shedeur Sanders has been the antithesis of shaky: 70% completion rate, six touchdowns, zero turnovers. Despite missing a practice with arm soreness.

Meanwhile, Gabriel, though, hasn’t dropped his chin. “For me, I’m just focused on today… it’s been a blast to be able to learn and compete every single day,” he said. But the optics game is a ruthless one. Nick Pedone warned that “things get so loud if Shedeur Sanders outperforms Dillon Gabriel” that the Browns might not be able to hide behind the “developmental” label much longer. That’s the gap this whole situation sits in between a rookie quarterback preaching patience and analysts seeing wasted reps and missed opportunities.

Dillon Gabriel’s place in Browns’ QB shuffle faces heat

After watching Dorian Thompson-Robinson’s splendid outing on Friday, fans thought Cleveland’s depth chart was about to be shaken up. If not flipped entirely. In the preseason opener against the Panthers, the fourth-stringer Sanders got the call. And he delivered. Playing the first half and most of the second, Sanders led three touchdown drives, went 14-of-23 for 138 yards with two TD passes. He took just two sacks and kept the sheet clean from interceptions in a 30–10 win. Well, more than enough to light up social media.

Even LeBron James couldn’t stay quiet, firing off: “That young (man) looking good out there… And I don’t wanna hear that ‘It’s only preseason’ bs. Cause if he was out there not going in y’all would be on his (butt) about it! So give credit and grace lames.” The fanbase heard him loud and clear, already campaigning for Sanders to climb the ladder. But Cleveland wasn’t swayed. Less than a week later, their unofficial depth chart for Game 2 against the Eagles kept Sanders buried at No. 4, quite still behind Flacco, Pickett, and Dillon Gabriel.

The timing raised eyebrows. Hours earlier, head coach Kevin Stefanski had played down the QB order entirely. “By Wednesday, Thursday, I’ll have a better feel for the game and how we’re going to handle that… Dillon can do some 11-on-11. We’re still mindful of his tightness in the hamstring. Kenny, not just yet, but both guys [are] progressing well.” Stefanski insists health will shape the next call, but after Sanders’ performance, it’s hard not to wonder if he’s already second-guessing the status of others.