The Cleveland Browns are doing a strong job of positioning the franchise for its next attempt at fixing the quarterback position in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Heading into this weekend’s game against the Baltimore
Ravens, the Browns have lost five of their last six games to fall to 2-7 on the season. In addition to the Baltimore game, the Browns still have to play the Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers, Buffalo Bills, and Cincinnati Bengals, so the losses may continue to pile up.
Each defeat helps Cleveland’s draft standing, of course, with the Browns currently holding the second-highest chance of securing the No. 1 overall selection next spring. Among the teams the Browns are competing against are the Tennessee Titans, New York Jets, and Las Vegas Raiders.
Cleveland’s loss to the Jets last week helped, and the Browns still have games against the Raiders in Week 12 and the Titans in Week 14, so if they play their cards right, the Browns will see their odds continue to increase.
The Browns also hold the first-round selection of the Jacksonville Jaguars, which is currently slotted at No. 19 overall but could improve as the Jaguars have lost three of their last four games and placed rookie Travis Hunter on injured reserve this week with a season-ending knee injury.
With everyone expecting/accepting that the Browns will be back in the quarterback market again in 2026, the question remains about what to do with the quarterbacks currently on the roster, specifically Dillon Gabriel, who has started the past five games.
That is a question being pondered not only locally, where a day can’t go by without a talking head crafting so new outrage about why fifth-round draft choice Shedeur Sanders is not playing, but also on a national level.
Two recent examples include articles from ESPN and The Athletic.
Starting with ESPN, Bill Barnwell examined 11 teams that could either seek to replace their current starter or bring in competition for a starter who may not be replaceable due to contract issues.
Falling under the category of “placeholders for someone more exciting” is none other than young Mr. Gabriel:
Gabriel inherited the quarterback job in Cleveland by default after the Browns decided to trade Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco. I’m not sure the Browns can be terribly disappointed by what they’ve seen in his five starts. The third-round rookie hasn’t been good, taking sacks on nearly 9% of his drop-backs and running a league-low success rate of 33%, but Gabriel has also protected the football, turning the ball over only twice across those five matchups. Given that the Browns are relying on their defense to win games, ending drives with kicks isn’t the worst thing in the world.
There’s a big difference between being worth a roster spot and proving yourself to be a franchise quarterback, of course, and Gabriel looks more on track for the former than the latter. The Browns have two first-round picks as a product of their draft-day trade with the Jaguars, and they might need only one of them to land the quarterback they prefer in next year’s draft. While coach Kevin Stefanski all but acknowledged that the Browns have no intention of bringing back Deshaun Watson this season, there’s also a chance that the organization could decide to bring their disastrous acquisition back into the fold in 2026, which will be the final season of his contract. Gabriel should be on the roster next season, but it probably won’t be as the starter.
Gabriel landed in the category of “way too early to pass lasting judgment, but so far, not so great”:
Gabriel has six total touchdowns with two turnovers and 17 sacks in five starts since taking over what might be the most cursed job in sports. He’s the seventh quarterback to make at least five starts for the Browns under coach Kevin Stefanski. Jacoby Brissett and Baker Mayfield are the only ones with passer ratings above 80 and positive EPA per pass play.
Not the most glowing of recommendations from either site about Gabriel’s long-term prospects, but also not surprising to any Browns fan who has watched the team’s offense this season.
While it is not all his fault, see the lackluster group of wide receivers and the aging offensive line, the numbers are still hard to ignore when it comes to Gabriel:
- No. 41 in EPA per drop back at -0.18 (ahead of just Tennessee’s Cam Ward and Minnesota’s J.J. McCarthy)
- No. 32 in drop-back success rate at 33 percent
- No. 32 in yards per attempt at 5.0
- No. 32 in air yards per attempt at 5.9
- No. 29 in first downs per attempt at 24.7 percent
There is little to suggest that Gabriel will hold onto the starting job past this season, or perhaps even past the next game or two, unless there is an unprecedented spike in his numbers.
And while he may be the author of his own demise, if Gabriel continues to play at his current level, he may end up helping the Browns finally solve the quarterback situation come draft night in 2026.
