The Browns QB room has been the most talked about in the league ever since the team elected to draft Dillon Gabriel in the third round and Shedeur Sanders in the fifth.
There’s been no shortage of headlines in terms of the former Colorado star and Cleveland’s handling of the entire situation. Especially with reports surfacing that Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski never wanted to draft Shedeur to begin with.
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As much as Shedeur impressed in his first taste of preseason action — throwing for 138 yards and two scores in the franchise’s 30-10 win over the Panthers — his performance was equally as disappointing in this weekend’s finale.
Sanders completed just three of his six second half pass attempts for a total of 14 yards while also taking five sacks — including a brutal 24-yard loss that took the Browns offense out of midfield.
Aug 23, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Los Angeles Rams linebacker Jamil Muhammad (45) chases Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders (12) during the second half at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
Browns have their critics
One of the most controversial things the Browns decided to do on Saturday was pull Sanders ahead of the team’s final two-minute drill in order to give Tyler Huntley a look.
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That drew a reaction from many across the NFL world, including recently retired Pro Bowl quarterback Derek Carr who had this to say on X:
“I need to understand why we don’t get to see @ShedeurSanders run this 2 minute drill? Wouldn’t you want to see your young QB operate in this situation? Get him more reps for the future? I didn’t see the whole game so maybe he already showed enough? Help me understand this…”
Kurt Warner speaks
Carr wasn’t the only one to take Stefanski and others to task, however, as two-time MVP and Pro Football Hall of Famer Kurt Warner also expressed disappointment in Cleveland’s handling (or mishandling) of their young signal-callers.
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Taking to social media, the ex-QB turned NFL Network analyst shared how he wishes Shedeur and Dillon Gabriel had gotten the same opportunities to prove themselves this summer.
“I was really looking forward to the competition between Dillon Gabriel & Shedeur Sanders in last preseason game, I know it plays out like this sometimes, but a bummer that both didn’t have the same opps to make plays!” Warner exclaimed. “DG played well again but had good opps to make plays, SS didn’t those same opps so it was hard to make much of an assessment!”
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Clearly the Browns have gone about things in a unique way when it comes to their approach to the position. And it’s sounding like they could keep four QBs on the roster heading into Week 1.
Joe Flacco will remain the team’s starter for the time being, but right now it’s looking like Cleveland will give Gabriel every opportunity to remain ahead of Sanders on the depth chart.
This story was originally reported by The Spun on Aug 24, 2025, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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