Cleveland Browns Defend Dillon Gabriel Amid Mounting Shedeur Sanders Calls

It would not be much of a surprise for cranky fans on social media to be calling for head coaches to make major moves with the roster, particularly when the team is bad and the even more so when the quarterback is struggling. For the Browns, the team is bad and the quarterback, rookie Dillon Gabriel, is struggling–and it doesn’t help that Shedeur Sanders is waiting for his chance.

But for coach Kevin Stefanski, the calls for the team to make a move away from Gabriel are, of course, more complicated. The team also has fellow rookie Sanders on hand, and Sanders entered the season as one of the most-watched additions to any roster, after having suffered the most dramatic fall in NFL draft history, going from a projected Top 10 pick, all the way to the fifth round.

It’s not just fans calling for Sanders. It’s former players and prominent media members, too. But not only is Stefanski saying he is sticking with Gabriel, he defended the way the rookie has played to this point.

Browns’ Stefanski Defends Dillon Gabriel

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Stefanski was asked, “What’s been missing in these four starts,” from Gabriel, a player the team professed to be excited to add at the draft in April.

Stefanski is backing Gabriel to the hilt, even saying he will stick with him through the bye week, and suggesting that the offense’s struggles don’t fall on the quarterback.

“Playing good on offense is about 11 guys on the field, and us as coaches doing our job,” he said. “Obviously, young players will learn in each outing that they’re out there – I think Dillon will continue to learn, will continue to get better, but it’s really an entire offensive type of thing where we all need to better.”

Shedeur Sanders Getting Increasing National Backing

Maybe, but the reality is that in four games, Gabriel has completed 85 of 142 passes, just a 59.9% completion rate, and is gaining just 4.9 yards per attempt. His quarterback rating is 78.4 and Pro Football Focus has graded him at a 46.5, which is 36th out of 36 quarterbacks to get grades this season.

Former NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho pointed out on his “Speakeasy” podcast Sunday night that Stefanski’s unwillingness to give Sanders a shot could ultimately cost him his job, because if Sanders gets a chance and does play well, the player will know he never had the coach’s backing.

“Stefanski, you look dumb,” Acho said.

The Browns and their coach were also called out by former veteran lineman Richie Incognito, who said, “Gabriel played like (expletive). You don’t take the bye week to evaluate, ‘Hey, should we give this kid (Sanders) a chance? Is he going to give us a shot in the arm?’ … This situation stinks. There’s some bull (expletive) going on.”

Browns Say Shedeur Sanders Dealing With Back Injury

Stefanski did say that Sanders is dealing with a back injury that limited him coming into Sunday and was part of the decision to not have him suit up for that game. But the presumption, still, is that Sanders should be ready to go in Week 10.

“He obviously came in Saturday with his back injury,” Stefanski said. “We were hopeful that he’d be able to move around well enough to suit up on Sunday. But, put him through a pre-game warm up, and obviously just didn’t feel like he was ready to play, but he’s getting better every day and I’m hopeful that he’ll continue to improve.”

Micah Parsons Reveals Sneaky Way Aaron Rodgers Avoided Getting Sacked By Him

Micah Parsons managed to sack Aaron Rodgers for the first time in his career on Sunday, but he missed out on getting another sack during the game thanks to a head-up play from the 41-year-old veteran quarterback.

At another point in the game, Parsons came so close to taking Rodgers down until Rodgers quickly threw the football before he could reach him.

"The one where I was hawking him down, and I was this close to getting him," Parsons recalled. "Then he was like, 'I heard the crowd.' I was like, 'That's some vet s— right there.' I'm like, 'Crowd, shhh.'

The surprisingly heavy Green Bay crowd appeared to come in handy for Rodgers. Assuming the crowd was cheering thinking Parsons was gonna sack Rodgers—or even just reacting to the play—the quarterback was able to use the noise as a signal to get the ball out of his hands and avoid the sack.

"He was great to play. And he told me to buy his house," Parsons added with a laugh.

The moment was somewhat reminiscent of an earlier Packers game this season, when Browns defensive end Myles Garrett beat Packers offensive tackle Rasheed Walker, leaving Walker to warn quarterback Jordan Love by yelling, "Jordan! Run!" Like Rodgers, Love was able to get the ball out of his hands before Garrett reached him.

This wasn't the only time Rodgers was able to use his football IQ to avoid a sack in the game. At another point of the game, Packers defensive lineman Karl Brooks appeared to strip-sack Rodgers. Replay later showed that Rodgers actually threw the ball at the feet of running back Jaylen Warren quickly before he went down, and it was ruled an incomplete pass. While Rodgers might not be able to run like he could in his prime, his awareness still gives him a great advantage.

Ultimately, Parsons and Rashan Gary combined for three sacks on Parsons as the Packers earned a 35-25 win over the Steelers. Parsons is now up to 6.5 sacks on the season, sixth-most in the NFL.

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