The Cleveland Browns got their first look at their new quarterback depth chart during rookie minicamp over the weekend when Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel rolled into town. And while initial reports indicated that Sanders was far superior to Gabriel, it turns out that may not have been the case.
Sanders has entered the Browns organization with quite a bit of fanfare after his historic fall down the board in the 2025 NFL draft. Initially pegged as a first-round pick, Sanders slid all the way to the fifth round before Cleveland decided to trade up to the No. 144 pick and select him.
Earlier in the draft, the Browns controversially passed over Sanders and selected Gabriel in the third round. Now, both guys are competing for the wide-open starting quarterback gig, and while it initially seemed like Sanders had gotten off to a better start than Gabriel, conflicting reports have emerged on the situation.
"I know what I saw, that's why I charted numbers, I had numbers to prove it. He was 3-of-8 on his second set of seven-on-sevens, Shedeur" Browns analyst Tony Grossi said on "The Really Big Show." "The other guy was 6-of-8, slightly better. This is a period where the ball is not supposed to hit the ground unless a defender wraps around you."
.@TheRealTRizzo wants to know from @TonyGrossi why there’s conflicting reports on which QB looked better at rookie minicamp…. pic.twitter.com/nQFCPDGO0R
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) May 13, 2025
Regardless of who played better than who, it's tough to put too much weight into what took place at rookie minicamp. Sanders and Gabriel will have another shot to stake their claim for the starting quarterback gig during training camp, and that will provide a much clearer answer when it comes to which of these rookie passers is ahead of the other.