It is no secret that the Cleveland Browns offense is struggling each week. So far, they haven’t even cracked 20 points in a game and have scored only 56 points for the four contests. Many have wondered
if the team should make a change at quarterback even in Week 5, despite the travel and defense they’ll face on the schedule.
We even suggested Shedeur Sanders as an option.
RELATED: OT CAM ROBINSON CONTRACT
Now, CBS Sports is stating that Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski is going to make a change at quarterback for their upcoming match Sunday with the Minnesota Vikings to be played at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England.
According to the report, Stefanski is ready to start rookie Dillon Gabriel in place of veteran Joe Flacco.
QB Joe Flacco is ranked #18 in total passing yards (815), #43 in average yards per attempt (5.1), #2 in attempts (160), #4 with completions (93), #34 in completion percentage (58.1), just two TD passes against six interceptions (ranked #2), #20 in passes that covert into first downs, and sacked nine times (#8).
As far as the Browns offense, the overall passing attack is ranked #20 while the run game is ranked #29. They average 279.8 yards per game, and are middle of the pack in passing yardage and #29 in total rushing yards.
The offense is only averaging 14.0 points a game, which is second-to-last in the league.
One of the reasons for the offense’s struggles is that the offensive line is not playing well. Both starting tackles, Jack Conklin (elbow) and Dawand Jones (knee), have been injured. Jones is listed on the IR list while Conklin was ruled inactive for the Detroit game last weekend, and is questionable for this week’s game.
KT Leveston and Cornelius Lucas have been the replacements at tackle, and neither one has played well. Just this week, Cleveland made a trade with the Houston Texans for OT Cam Robinson, who will end up at left tackle. If the Browns can get Conklin back into the lineup, with the addition of Robinson, there is plenty of hope that this group can rebound and become a viable force instead of the crutch it has been lately.
Robinson was taken in the second round by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2017 NFL draft, Cleveland is his fourth NFL team.
Dillon won the backup QB job in training camp despite being a rookie out of Oregon. He beat out Kenny Pickett, fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders, and veteran Tyler Huntley. Gabriel has played in two games in a mop-up role, going 3-4 for 19 yards and one touchdown. Reportedly, there are those in the Cleveland organization who are opposed to sitting Flacco and starting a rookie.
The 2025 season is not lost despite a 1-3-0 record. There are plenty of games left and an abundance of winnable contests against mediocre to bad teams such as Cincinnati, Miami, Las Vegas, New England, the New York Jets, Tennessee, and Chicago. Other clubs like the San Francisco 49ers, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Vikings have winning records versus horrid teams and haven’t been good against the better teams, making them vulnerable and ripe for a loss. Plus, the Browns do play the Ravens again, who currently are 1-3-0. QB Lamar Jackson is now out with a hamstring issue.
Not to mention the AFC North Division is the worst in the NFL and ripe for the taking.
After the Week 4 loss to Detroit, Stefanski told the Associated Press when asked if Flacco would remain the QB going forward:
“I understand the question, especially when we are struggling the way we are on offense. But that’s not our focus right now. To have any success on either side of the ball, you need to play well and play together. Right now, we have too many things going wrong, and we all own that. It isn’t because of one player.”
This season, Flacco has thrown a ton of passes because this offense hasn’t been able to run the ball. He is 93-160 for 815 yards with two TD passes against six interceptions, converted 35 first downs on throws, has a completion ratio of 58.1%, and a passer rating of 60.3.
If the reports of Gabriel are true, the Vikings contest would be his first official NFL start. The big question remains: Could he jumpstart a stagnant offense?
Gabriel was hand-picked by Stefanski in this year’s draft, taken in Round 3. In college, he played in 64 games and was a pandemic athlete who gained additional time. He threw for 18,722 yards with 155 TD passes. He also showed off his legs with 424 rushes for 1,209 yards and an additional 32 touchdowns in a tough conference. Not to mention a Gabriel-led Oregon squad beat the eventual National Champions, Ohio State.
As a senior, he was named First Team All-Big-10, First Team All-American, voted Big-10 Quarterback of the Year, Big-10 Offensive Player of the Year, and Big-10 Most Valuable Player. That is a huge pedigree.
He placed third in the Heisman race and set three FBS records: Most Career TD passes (155), Most Career TDs responsible for (190), and Most Career Points responsible for (1,136). He was invited to participate in this year’s Senior Bowl to compete against Jaxson Dart (drafted Round 1), Jalen Milroe (Round 3), and Tyler Shough (Round 2).
The Browns should show improvement on offense as rookie RB Quinshon Jenkins had a good game against Detroit and is finding some running room. With Lucas out, Robinson inserted, and maybe a healthy Conklin added, these factors just might propel the offense to get going and finish drives. This offense does feature two good tight ends.
So far, punter Corey Bojorquez has been used way too much as he is ranked #2 in the league in total punts with 21. That averages out to be 5.25 punts per game.
This season, the Vikings have allowed just 151.5 passing yards per game, which ranks them #3 with 685 total yards, and ranked #4 in touchdown passes allowed (3). Their defense is in the bottom third against the run, allowing 4.5 yards per carry average.
Dillon would be faced with a harsh test against a tough Vikings defense.
ESPN Cleveland radio host Tony Rizzo also said Tuesday morning that Gabriel will start in London.
