Dillon Gabriel finally got his chance to shine. He did not disappoint. The second-year signal-caller threw three touchdown passes and zero interceptions in the Cleveland Browns’ final preseason game against the New England Patriots.
The Browns hosted the Patriots at Huntington Park on Friday for their final preparation match. Todd Monken rested both Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders, leaving Gabriel to orchestrate the Browns’ offense.
Gabriel finished with 12 completions from 15 attempts for 186 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Browns won their first preseason game 37-13.
Gabriel attempted just 9 total passes in the Browns’ first two games, which were defeats to the Bears and the Bills. With just one game left before the regular season, head coach Monken excluded Watson and Sanders from taking reps. Both stood on the sidelines without pads as Gabriel stepped in under center.
Gabriel threw his first TD pass to possibly the Browns’ preseason MVP, second-year receiver Luke Floriea. Floriea caught Gabriel’s pass and avoided Patriots DBs for a score just under four minutes in the first quarter. Gabriel and Floriea connected once again four minutes before the end of the quarter.
Midway through the second quarter, the score was 20-10. Gabriel hit former Wake Forest and App State receiver Ahmani Marshall for a seven-yard touchdown.
Monken replaced Gabriel with rookie Taylen Green. The former Arkansas starter added to the Browns’ total by setting up Davon Booth for a touchdown. Green also rushed for 66 yards on 8 carries.
Sure, Gabriel played mostly the Patriots’ second- and third-stringers, but he still racked up . He certainly increased his value with the outing, but Monken has already with Sanders as the veteran’s understudy.
There has been a lot of chatter about trading Gabriel to another team, but after Friday’s performance, the Browns may need to hold off on that plan. Amazon Prime broadcaster and College football expert Kirk Herbstreit sent a message to Monken and general manager Andrew Berry about Gabriel.
There’s no way, see, this was not a one-night Dillon Gabriel thing for me. I’ve seen this kid do exactly what he did tonight almost every start he made in college, whether it was at UCF (Knights), Oklahoma (Sooners), or Oregon (Ducks). So, this is who he is to me. And with (Todd) Monken’s system and calling the plays and building it, I don’t know how you let him go, personally. There is no way I would let him leave.
Kirk Herbstreit said (H/T On3)
As Herbstreit noted, Gabriel played at three schools in college: UCF, Oklahoma, and Oregon. By the time he finished college, he had played 64 games and ended with a 46-17 record. He threw for 155 touchdowns and 32 interceptions and also rushed for 33 scores.
The Browns drafted Dillon Gabriel 94th overall in 2025. He outperformed Shedeur Sanders to bag the QB2 job behind Joe Flacco. Gabriel made 10 appearances in his rookie season. He completed 59.5% of his passes, threw 7 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, and went 1-6. Sanders replaced him toward the back end of the year and has stayed ahead of the 25-year-old since.