The Cleveland Browns took a 41-17 beating from the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2. The Ravens offense steamrolled the Browns in the second half, after keeping the Baltimore offense in check for the first half. They did a good job holding down Derrick Henry, but the rest of their offense proved to be too much. Cleveland’s offense couldn’t keep up, and Joe Flacco took an early seat on the bench, allowing Dillon Gabriel to get a chance.
Gabriel was the QB that replaced Flacco, instead of Shedeur Sanders, and got to show off his skills to Browns fans in garbage time.
The Browns Backup QB Situation
Gabriel got his first regular-season NFL action of his rookie season in the fourth quarter. After the game got out of reach, Gabriel came in and threw his first NFL touchdown. Gabriel wasn’t the only one with a first NFL touchdown, as rookie Dylan Sampson got on the board with his first.
Sanders has been buried in the depth chart throughout the preseason and training camp. Things haven’t changed since then, as Sanders remains the third quarterback on the Browns roster. Therefore, it was Gabriel’s job as the backup to replace Flacco. Gabriel looked good in his limited action and could begin to raise questions on whether he will be starting in the near future.
Dillon Gabriel should start.
Looks much better than Joe Flacco.
— Polymarket Football (@PolymarketBlitz) September 14, 2025
The Browns didn’t have any reason to keep Flacco in the game once they went down 31. Flacco doesn’t need to take any unnecessary hits, and the Browns took no chances. Gabriel will be giving the staff something to think about. Gabriel completed all three of his passes for 20 yards and a touchdown. On the other hand, Flacco completed 25 of his 45 passes for 199 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
The QB job is going to remain between Flacco and Gabriel, unless one of them gets injured. Sanders won’t be seeing the field anytime soon as the Browns have stayed true to their initial evaluations of both Gabriel and Sanders.
The Browns’ offense needs to improve if they want to win games this season. They haven’t put up more than 17 points in a game. That won’t cut it if the Browns want to have success. Gabriel was a bright spot and surely won’t be dropping behind Sanders on the depth chart after that effort. All eyes will be on Gabriel as Cleveland prepares itself for a very tough task as the Green Bay Packers come to town.
