“That’s not my focus right now,” was Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski’s long-winded way of saying Shedeur Sanders probably won’t be Dillon Gabriel’s backup if/when he replaces Joe Flacco as the team’s starting quarterback.
Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot strongly hinted that the switch from Flacco to Gabriel would happen this week when the Browns take on the Minnesota Vikings in London, England. She provided no clarity on Sanders, since Stefanski wouldn’t give her anything besides the most coded of coach-speak.
“Some of the turnovers have not been Flacco’s fault, but the Browns appear ready to turn the offense over to Gabriel to see what he can do,” Cabot wrote.
“Gabriel started 64 games in college, and the moment probably won’t be too big for him, not even in London. It appears it’s Gabriel time this week.
“As for who the backup would be, Stefanski declined to answer when asked fifth-round pick Shedeur Sanders is ready.”
Flacco had three turnovers against the Detroit Lions in a 34-10 loss at Ford Field. He completed 16-of-34 passes and tossed two interceptions. At 1-3, there’s little reason for Cleveland to continue deploying the 40-year-old in a win-now postseason push, since he’s not winning now.
The Browns are going to see what they have in Gabriel, who the team took with a third-round pick and would’ve viewed him more highly if he were taller. It’s unclear if Sanders will be Gabriel’s QB2, or if Flacco, or even the scout team’s Bailey Zappe, will be on standby instead.
If Gabriel isn’t the answer, one figures Sanders could get a start at the end of the season as Cleveland looks to evaluate if it should use one of its two 2026 first-round picks on a signal-caller.
If the Browns are tanking anyway, might as well get extra eyeballs on Sanders’ start.