After Shedeur Sanders started the Browns' first preseason game, Dillon Gabriel got his turn to start in their second preseason matchup against the Eagles, a 22-13 win for Cleveland. Gabriel did not play in the preseason opener due to a hamstring injury, but played the entire first half in his debut on Saturday.
Gabriel and the Browns got off to a hot start, going 3-3 on third down and leading a touchdown drive. Gabriel went 4-4 on the drive, and impressed with nice ball placement on his second third-down conversion.
Dillon Gabriel with a third down strike against the blitz pic.twitter.com/mLvvzb7AGl
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Turnovers marred the strong first drive for Gabriel, who threw a pick-six into traffic on the team’s second chance with the ball. He rebounded by leading the team down the field for a field goal on the ensuing drive, but then fumbled the handoff on the first play of the fourth possession.
Andrew Mukuba PICK-6!
— NFL (@NFL) August 16, 2025
The @Eagles second-round pick takes Dillon Gabriel's pass to the house.
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“Plenty to clean up," Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said of Gabriel's play after the game. "There's some things that I thought he did well. I thought our offense as a whole on third down was very good early, which allowed us to stay on the field, because I don't think we were great on first and second down, but plenty to clean up.”
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— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) August 16, 2025
Stefanski notably turned down the opportunity to compare Gabriel's preseason start to Sanders's later in his presser. He instead said, "I'm pleased with both those guys, where they are in their progression. They have the mentality that they're gonna get better every day, which I appreciate. That's really where our focus is."
There is one preseason game remaining before the Browns begin the regular season against the Bengals on Aug. 7. Stefanski is unsure if all four of his quarterbacks competing for their spot on the depth chart—Gabriel, Sanders, Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett—will be healthy enough to play in that game, but hopes they will be as the competition soon reaches a conclusion.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Kevin Stefanski Gives Honest Assessment of Dillon Gabriel's Preseason Debut for Browns.
