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Second-year quarterback\u00a0<\/span>Dillon Gabriel<\/a>\u00a0was the\u00a0<\/span>Cleveland Browns<\/a>‘\u00a0star of their\u00a0<\/span><\/span>preseason<\/span><\/span><\/a>\u00a0finale\u00a0<\/span><\/span>against the New England Patriots<\/a>, as he completed\u00a012 of 15 passes for 186 yards\u00a0and three touchdowns against New England backups.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Some\u00a0<\/span>suggested<\/span><\/a>\u00a0that Gabriel’s performance could cause first-year Browns head coach\u00a0<\/span>Todd Monken<\/span><\/a> to have second thoughts about naming second-year pro Shedeur Sanders<\/a> the team’s primary backup behind starter Deshaun Watson<\/a>. Following Cleveland’s 37-13 win, Monken was asked whether the events of the evening impacted the QB2 spot on his depth chart.\u00a0<\/p>\n “No, I don\u2019t see it that way.” Monken directly answered, per the Browns’ website.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n Monken made it clear from springtime workouts through last week that Gabriel was the team’s third-choice option, as the 2025 third-round draft pick was never given an opportunity to truly compete alongside Watson and Sanders for the starting job. That doesn’t necessarily mean that Monken is ready to discard Gabriel before rosters have to be cut down to 53 players at 6 p.m. ET this Sunday.\u00a0<\/p>\n “He’s a prideful guy, he’s had a lot of success in his career, and all he does is prepare,” Monken said about Gabriel. “That’s all he does. Comes to work every day, prepares like a pro. You can see he can really operate. I mean, he gets it. He gets what we want to do. He has a certain confidence about him when he takes the field. And I’m fired up. … It’s like having a coach.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Some view<\/a> 2026 sixth-round draft pick\u00a0<\/span>Taylen Green<\/a> as a more exciting prospect than Gabriel. Green completed 5 of 7 passes for 27 yards on Thursday night, and he also rushed for a team-high 66 yards on eight carries.<\/p>\n Following the game, Monken said he and general manager Andrew Berry “haven’t had a chance to really talk about” whether or not the Browns will carry four active quarterbacks on their Week 1 roster. If the Browns want to keep Green, they could reach out to the Atlanta Falcons<\/a>\u00a0about a trade involving Gabriel.<\/span><\/p>\n The Falcons’ current quarterback situation is a mess,<\/a> and first-year Falcons\u00a0<\/span>head coach Kevin Stefanski<\/a>\u00a0favored Gabriel over Sanders throughout much of 2025 when Stefanski was Cleveland’s head coach.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Meanwhile, Gabriel seemed happy to simply receive an opportunity on Thursday to show what he can do, albeit against players who are largely anonymous to casual fans.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n “At some point you want to see your hard work coming to fruition in a real live setting,” Gabriel acknowledged. “And of course it wasn’t exactly what I wanted the first two preseason games, and that’s probably the frustrating part on my end. But then being able to go out today with a bunch of great dudes and a real [opportunity] to just make the most of it, maxing in the moment, that’s really what it’s all about.”<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote><\/div>\nTodd Monken makes clear Shedeur Sanders call after Dillon Gabriel performance vs. Patriots<\/h2>\n
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Will Browns keep four quarterbacks on active roster?<\/h2>\n
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