Rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel has officially won the Browns’ backup job.
Head coach Kevin Stefanski announced Tuesday that the third-round pick will serve as Joe Flacco’s No. 2, with fifth-rounder Shedeur Sanders settling in as the team’s third-string and scout team quarterback. The decision came a day after Cleveland traded Kenny Pickett to the Raiders for a 2026 fifth-round pick.
Gabriel earned the role with strong preseason play, leading scoring drives on five of his seven series and showing poise in two-minute situations. Across two games, he completed 25 of 37 passes for 272 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
“It’s such an all-encompassing evaluation,” Stefanski said. “What you see in games is important, but also how these guys work in practice. Dillon’s a player who keeps getting better.”
Pickett, sidelined by a hamstring injury since late July, never took the field in preseason before being moved.
For now, Cleveland sticks with three quarterbacks: Flacco, Gabriel, and Sanders. Deshaun Watson, still rehabbing his Achilles, remains on the PUP list.
