Shedeur Sanders was thrown in at the deep end on Sunday after receiving no first-team practice reps, and Dillon Gabriel remains Kevin Stefanski's priority at the Cleveland Browns
21:24 ET, 16 Nov 2025
Kevin Stefanski has confirmed that Dilon Gabriel will return once he's cleared concussion protocol
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Kevin Stefanski has confirmed that Dilon Gabriel will return once he's cleared concussion protocol(Image: 2025 Getty Images)
Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski has already insisted that Dillon Gabriel will continue as the starting quarterback once he clears concussion protocol following Shedeur Sanders' underwhelming debut.
Sanders replaced Gabriel in the third quarter and experienced his first competitive action since being selected in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. Although Browns fans gave Sanders a stunning ovation, his debut didn't go to plan.
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The NFL rookie completed just four of 16 passes and threw one interception as Cleveland surrendered a six-point lead and lost 23-16 to the Baltimore Ravens. It's since surfaced that Sanders has not had any first-team reps in practice, as Stefanski has focused solely on Gabriel.
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Gabriel was evaluated for a concussion on the sidelines and was later ruled out of the game. It remains unclear whether he will be healthy for the upcoming clash against the Las Vegas Raiders, but if he's unavailable, Sanders is expected to start.
Sanders was thrown in at the deep end on Sunday, and despite being the backup quarterback, Stefanski has not allowed him to have any first-team reps in practice. However, Gabriel was afforded the privilege when veteran Joe Flacco was the starting quarterback.
"With a young quarterback, with Dillon starting, you want to make sure he gets a lot of the reps," Stefanski explained to reporters in October. "It's different when you have a veteran with Joe."
Shedeur Sanders made an underwhelming NFL debut on Sunday
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Shedeur Sanders made an underwhelming NFL debut on Sunday(Image: 2025 Getty Images)
Stefanski admitted that the concussion protocol is tough to navigate, but confirmed that Gabriel would assume his role when healthy. When asked to assess Sanders' debut, Stefanski said: "We'll look at it, but he's gonna battle like he does.
"I'm sure there's things we can clean up, but those are things we'll look at tomorrow. We trust all of our guys to perform; he's no different.
"Playing a backup quarterback role, that's tough to come in there. But we trust him. I know there's things he's going to want to do better, but that's why we work."
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Sanders was extremely grateful for the opportunity to play, but admitted to reporters that he didn't play well. The rookie also confirmed that it was his first time playing with the starting core, and even claimed that he had never thrown a pass to Jerry Jeudy before Sunday's game.
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"First and foremost, I want to thank God for giving me the opportunity to get out there," Sanders said. "That's all you could ask for, honestly. Chance to get out there, get your feet wet. To experience how I feel to even be out there with the team, with the first group, with everybody.
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"I don't think I played good, I don't think I played good at all. I think it's a lot of things we need to look at during the week. Go and get comfortable, even throwing routes with Jerry, and all those guys. I think that was my first ball to him all year.
"Other than that, I just think we've got to go next week and understand, so that we have a week to prepare." Sanders later added, "Just going out there and seeing daylight, that's all I needed."