A former 2011 fourth-round pick has emerged as the latest to comment on the Cleveland Browns quarterback room. No matter how stacked the 2026 draft class may be, the Browns decided to draft both Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders in 2025.
With a pair of rookies on the roster, the 37-year-old ex-NFL receiver told Kevin Stefanski exactly what he wants to see in the upcoming season.
Cecil Shorts III Only Wants to See Gabriel and Sanders in the Preseason
Cecil Shorts III played on the Jacksonville Jaguars, Houston Texans, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers in his NFL career from 2011-16. He still follows the game and made sure to watch a ton of both Gabriel and Sanders in college. Knowing that the Browns have a massive decision ahead of them, the Ohio native didn’t hold back on Stefanski, who enters his sixth season as head coach of the Browns.
“Don’t want to see nobody else at quarterback but the two rookies. Preseason, all I want to see is Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders,” Shorts said. “I don’t want to see nobody else. Nobody else because those two guys need the opportunity to go win the job and then put them in the fire. I’m not big on switching quarterbacks. I hate that.”
He continued, “Kevin Stefanski, you supposed to be the guru. This is supposed to be what you supposed to do. You got two guys that are extremely accurate in college, that were unbelievably accurate in college… if you’re the guru like you say you are, if you’re the guru like everybody says that is, oh ‘he can develop.’ Prove it. Prove it. Pick one and develop him throughout the year.”
Shorts makes a compelling point about Cleveland’s approach. The Browns haven’t had consistent quarterback play in years, cycling through starter after starter without giving anyone a real chance to develop. With two promising rookies, this could be the perfect opportunity to finally establish some stability at the position.
Sanders vs. Gabriel: The Talent Debate
Shorts added that he sees way more talent in Sanders than he does in Gabriel. He knows that even though Sanders fell to the fifth round, no one was talking about drafting Gabriel in the first three rounds. No matter what Gabriel’s numbers at Oregon showed, there was a clear talent discrepancy between him and the Colorado star. Lately though, Gabriel has been drawing comparisons to Russell Wilson.
Looking at their 2024 seasons, Gabriel threw for 3,857 yards with 30 touchdowns and six interceptions. He completed 72.9% of his passes, a career high even with a huge increase in attempts. For Sanders, he threw for 4,134 yards with 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Sanders completed 27 more passes, good for a 74% completion percentage, giving him a slight edge on the 24-year-old.
The numbers tell an interesting story. While Sanders put up bigger raw numbers, Gabriel threw fewer interceptions. Both quarterbacks showed excellent accuracy, which should translate well to Stefanski’s system that relies heavily on precision passing and timing routes.
Keep in mind, Gabriel had six college seasons compared to Sanders’ four. There’s a reason that the 23-year-old fell below Gabriel in the draft, but the Browns are looking to prove to every single team in the league that they made a mistake by not drafting Sanders.
The experience factor cuts both ways. Gabriel’s extra seasons gave him more time to develop and face different defensive schemes, but it also raises questions about his ceiling. Sanders, meanwhile, accomplished more in less time but might need additional seasoning at the professional level.
Shorts’ message is clear: stop overthinking it and let the rookies compete. Cleveland has nothing to lose by giving both quarterbacks extensive preseason reps and seeing who emerges as the better option. The franchise has been searching for answers at quarterback for decades, and these two rookies represent their best shot at finally finding one.
Well is Sanders going to be another Tom Brady with a chip on his shoulders or a Johnny Manziel a complete big mouth failure? Choice is his unfortunately I think he likes to talk the talk and not walk the walk, we will all see.