CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Cleveland Browns have two rookie quarterbacks in their room, but you wouldn’t know it from watching their minicamp practices. Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel might both be first-year NFL players, but the organization has placed them on dramatically different development tracks — a fascinating strategy that the hosts of Orange and Brown Talk podcast unpacked in their latest episode.
The contrasting approaches couldn’t be more striking: one rookie being carefully nurtured in a controlled environment, the other thrown directly into the fire against the team’s best defenders.
Orange and Brown Talk podcast host Dan Labbe highlighted the team’s deliberate approach with Sanders: “I think the key takeaway for me is the Browns set him up this spring to be successful, whether it was who he was going against, that they put him in a position to complete some passes, feel really good about himself, take his time in the meeting room, sit with Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett and Deshaun Watson and Dillon Gabriel, and really learn what’s going on in this league. They’ve really set him up to have a successful spring, and I think he took advantage of it.”
This careful handling of Sanders stands in stark contrast to Gabriel’s experience. Browns beat reporter Mary Kay Cabot explained: “They are letting him go against Myles Garrett at times, and they’re letting him throw the ball to some of the top receivers in this camp, some of the top tight ends in this minicamp and on this roster. So they aren’t doing that by accident. These are very valuable reps, even at this time of year.”
The reasoning behind these divergent paths appears to be timeline-based. The Browns seem to view Gabriel as a quarterback who could potentially contribute sooner, hence the accelerated development track. Sanders, while talented, is being given the luxury of time to adapt to the NFL game without immediate pressure.
“I think that confidence building, which we talked a little bit about that yesterday, is also a big part whenever you have a younger quarterback. And as we’ve outlined, Dillon has just had more on his plate so far because of how they ordered their operations, so to speak,” Browns beat reporter Ashley Bastock noted during the podcast discussion.
What makes this approach particularly intriguing is that both rookies actually showed promise during minicamp. Sanders displayed the elite ball placement and accuracy that made him a coveted prospect, while Gabriel showed noticeable improvement over the final days when he was finally given some reps against lower-tier competition.
This raises a fascinating question: What if the Browns had used the same confidence-building approach with both rookies? As Labbe wondered aloud on the podcast: “I do wonder, what does this spring look like if they had done done the same with Dillon Gabriel, if it had been, we’re gonna put you over here with a lot of third and fourth teamers, let you get comfortable, let you get your sea legs?”
The dual-track approach also provides insight into how the Browns view their quarterback timeline. There appears to be “no rush” with Sanders, suggesting they see him as a longer-term investment who might not be expected to contribute immediately. Gabriel, meanwhile, seems to be on what Cabot describes as a “fast track,” indicating the team wants to evaluate his NFL readiness sooner rather than later.
As the team heads toward training camp, all eyes will be on how these differing development strategies evolve. Will Sanders begin taking reps with higher-level competition? Will Gabriel continue his accelerated track? Or will the approaches begin to converge as the regular season approaches?
For the complete breakdown of how the Browns are handling their rookie quarterbacks and what it means for the upcoming season, don’t miss the latest episode of Orange and Brown Talk. The hosts dive deep into every aspect of the quarterback competition and what these development strategies tell us about the team’s short and long-term plans.
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Note: Artificial intelligence was used to help generate this story from the Cleveland Orange and Brown Talk Podcast by cleveland.com. Visitors to cleveland.com have asked for more text stories based on website podcast discussions.