Why Browns may value Dillon Gabriel over Shedeur Sanders when roster crunch hits

The Browns got through the first four games without choosing among four quarterbacks because Dillon Gabriel went on injured reserve with a back injury on cut-down day. That let the Cleveland Browns keep all four without cutting or trading anyone. That cover has now expired: Gabriel was eligible to return after the first four regular-season games, and Cleveland played its fourth on Thursday.

The question of what comes next came up on 92.3 The Fan, in a segment the station shared on Sunday night. It featured Browns reporter Daryl Ruiter, co-host Nick Pedone and Lance Reisland. Ruiter laid out an ending:

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“The Cleveland Browns are going to trade Shedeur Sanders somewhere where he can go play, to a team that needs a quarterback… that’s how I think this ends. They’re not going to trade Dillon Gabriel, okay? And regardless of how high of an opinion they have of Shedeur, they have just as high, if not more, of a high opinion of Dillon Gabriel. They’re not going to trade Dillon Gabriel when he comes off injured reserve. They also, I don’t feel like, have the luxury of keeping four quarterbacks.”

Gabriel spent training camp as the No. 3 quarterback behind Deshaun Watson and Sanders, so the prediction puts him at least level with the player who held him off for the backup job.

The last look Cleveland got at him was the preseason finale. He started, played the first half and threw three touchdown passes, finishing with a 157.9 passer rating, before hurting his back. They were once ranked this way under Kevin Stefanski. It turned to Gabriel as a rookie starter in Week 5 last season and waited until Week 12 to go to Sanders, there is never a shortage of rankings for the Browns’ quarterback.

Why would the Browns move Shedeur Sanders now?

Deshaun Watson led his third straight winning drive on Thursday, setting up Andre Szmyt’s 56-yard field goal in a 27-24 win over the Steelers. The win moved the Browns to 3-1 and into first place in the AFC North, their best start since 2021. In mid-August, it’s no longer news that Browns fans booed him during a preseason loss to the Bills.

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With Watson winning, Sanders is Cleveland’s insurance policy, and he had not taken a regular-season snap through three games. His value to other teams has grown as quarterback injuries pile up around the league.

Sanders’ value to Cleveland is lowest while Watson stays healthy and keeps winning. His value elsewhere rises every time another team loses a starter, and that is the timing these analysts on 92.3 lean on.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, speaking on ESPN Cleveland, narrowed the field to the same two names:

“I could see if they get the right offer for whoever it is, I think Taylen Green they’d like to keep as a developmental, so it would probably have to be Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel.” Fowler said.

Reports had it in late September that the Browns had no plans to trade Sanders or Gabriel, but that was with Gabriel’s return still weeks away and no roster spot yet required.

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Once Gabriel’s 21-day practice window opens, the Browns have three weeks to activate him. Activating him means finding a spot on the 53-man roster for a fourth quarterback or clearing one, with the November trade deadline offering the cleanest exit. We shall see how it plays out.

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