The Cleveland Browns are currently getting blown out by the Baltimore Ravens, and as a result, they have benched Joe Flacco.
Rookie Dillon Gabriel will officially take over at quarterback for the remainder of the game.
Gabriel takes over with the score currently at 41-10. The rookie can now show what he is made of with the first team.
The Browns had one of the biggest quarterback battles heading into the regular season. After drafting Gabriel in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the team also drafted Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round.
Speculation began to mount about what the Browns would do moving forward, as they also had Kenny Pickett on the roster. Pickett was eventually traded to the Las Vegas Raiders, leaving Gabriel and Sanders to take up the backup and third emergency quarterback position.
Gabriel looked far sharper in preseason and was announced as the backup, with Sanders suiting up as the third stringer.
There are plenty who believe that the switch from Flacco might take place sooner rather than later, and this blowout loss to the Ravens could be the catalyst that causes that. A blowout loss does not guarantee that, but the offense stalling under Flacco could lead to a big change.
To be fair, the Ravens have one of the best defenses in the league, and they are tough to deal with. This is a major divisional matchup as well, and the Ravens were going to play tough regardless of the situation.
Now, Gabriel is under center and will presumably finish out the day. It will be interesting to see if he can string together some touchdowns with Flacco on the bench.
If Gabriel can get the offense going, it could cause some bigger conversations to happen when the game concludes.
For more on the Browns and NFL, head to Newsweek Sports.
Related Articles
2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.