Cleveland Browns fans aren’t the only ones who have already made up their minds about quarterback Dillon Gabriel.
The 24-year-old rookie has started four games for the Browns after they traded Week 1 starter Joe Flacco to the division rival Cincinnati Bengals, and the results speak for themselves.
Gabriel, Cleveland’s third-round pick back in April’s draft, has thrown for 683 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions with a 78.4 passer rating during his four-game stretch, and the Browns are 1-3 in those games.
Not to mention Cleveland is averaging just 246.5 yards and 17.5 points per game since switching to Gabriel, prompting a large contingency of the team’s fans to call for head coach Kevin Stefanski to bench Gabriel and turn to fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders.
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Browns reporter Brad Staibrook of ESPN Cleveland also urged the team to give Sanders a shot, and his Instagram post about benching Gabriel for Sanders caused a stir on Monday when Sanders liked the post.
“TRENDING: I’ve seen enough of Dillon Gabriel,” Stainbrook wrote. “It’s time for the Browns to start getting Shedeur Sanders ready after the bye week. Give him two weeks to take time, settle in, and make his first NFL start. You didn’t draft him to sit forever… and this offense needs a spark.
“Gabriel’s had his shot, and the team feels flat. Let the rookie learn on the fly, make mistakes, and grow. There’s no better time to see what you’ve got in Shedeur.”
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Though Sanders didn’t comment on the post, his liking it seems to signal that he agrees with Stainbrook’s assessment — as does most of the team’s fan base — which is on par with his comments from just a few weeks ago.
During an interview with ESPN Cleveland, Sanders boldly stated that he believes he could perform better than a good majority of the starting QBs in the NFL right now.
“I know if you see the quarterback play in the league right now, I know I’m capable of doing better than that,” he stated.
Sanders has yet to take a regular-season snap, but he did look impressive in his lone start of the preseason. He completed 14 of 23 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-10 win over the Carolina Panthers.
He was a far-less impressive 3 of 6 for 14 yards with five sacks in Cleveland’s preseason finale, though he was playing with the team’s third-string offensive line, which many believe hung him out to dry.
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