The Cleveland Browns may have already solved their QB dilemma.
The biggest question looming over the franchise ahead of the season was who, out of rookies Shedeur Sanders and Dilion Gabriel, would get the nod as the long-term quarterback.
Sanders got off to good a start after the Browns OTAs began this week.
There is a buzz around the 144th pick, who suffered a stunning fall in April’s draft after being touted as a top three pick,
With that said, it’s expected that head coach Kevin Stefanski will give veteran signal caller Joe Flacco, who’s preparing for his 18th season in the NFL, the starting job ahead of Week 1 of the new season.
However, should he struggle, pressure will mount for either Sanders, Gabriel, Kenny Pickett, or even Deshaun Watson to step into the role.
And with Sanders impressing his coaches and peers during team activities, reports have claimed that the Browns staff have already picked the 23-year-old as their starter.
“There are people inside the Browns’ facility who believe Shedeur Sanders 100% [can] be the starting quarterback,” said ESPN’S Kimberly Martin, who was at the camp.
Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III also hailed Sanders for his impressive performance at practise.
“When you watch all the clips of Shedeur Sanders, you see why his tape said he was a 1st Round QB,” Griffin said.
“He plays with NFL timing and rhythm, reads with his feet, plays ahead of the defense, has more than enough arm strength and he knows how to layer the ball.”
However, the Browns are not willing to publicly declare any quarterback winner just yet.
But Gabriel, who the Browns selected with the No. 94 overall pick in the third round ahead of Shedeur has just pen to paper of a four-year rookie deal.
It’s not known how much his deal is worth, but Sanders’ deal was reported $4.6 million that included a $447,000 signing bonus.
It’s unlikely Sanders or Gabriel will be thrust into the starting role in Week 1, but should Flacco get dropped, Sanders might have the edge.
The Athletic’s Zac Jackson said on the Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show that Sanders was making some noise.
‘I watch him. He is talented. I hear things, he’s handling things well,’ he said. ‘We’ll see… He’s gonna have to win every single day in the meetings, in the asking questions, in the practices, just to earn more chances.’
When speaking about Gabriel, Jackson was quite harsh.
“He does not look like an NFL quarterback and 31 other draft rooms didn’t think he was a second-day pick. So he’s gonna have to earn those too,” he added.
Meanwhile, veteran signal caller Flacco has already said he is not looking to be a mentor to either player.
“I tend to try to be honest, and I’ve said, ‘I’m not a mentor,” he told reporters at Browns OTAs.
“I play football.’ And in a quarterback room, there’s a lot of times — already, there’s been already a ton of times — where there’s learning experiences and I have a lot of experience, and I can talk on things, and hopefully they listen.
“But it’s not necessarily my job to make sure they listen to me. Hey, hopefully you have a really good relationship with the guys that are in the room, and you naturally want to do that.”
Let the battle begin.
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