“Worst Offense I’ve Ever Seen”: Analyst Slams Browns QB Dillon Gabriel
The Cleveland Browns‘ offense struggled again in Week 8, and NFL analyst Ken Carman wants to see a change.
Dillon Gabriel started his fourth straight game, and the rookie quarterback once again struggled to move the ball. He threw for just 156 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions in the Browns’ 32-13 loss to the New England Patriots.
After looking back on the game, Browns analyst Ken Carman called for Cleveland to bench Gabriel, as he believes he’s at best a backup quarterback in the NFL.
“I’m done with this, I’m done with this,” Carman
“I don’t think you’re unlocking anything. You are not unlocking a damn thing. It’s foolish to go through with this. I don’t care, I’m done. I’m trying not to scream for Shedeur, but I really want to scream for Shedeur. What is defensible about what transpired on offense yesterday? You can’t do anything offensively; there is nothing they can do. This is the worst offense I’ve ever seen. 38 years.”
Carman believes the Gabriel experiment needs to be over with, as the Browns should look to see what they have in Sanders before the year is up.
Browns Likely to Stick With Gabriel at Quarterback
Although Carman believes Gabriel is a backup quarterback at best, the Browns plan to stick with the rookie.
After the disappointing offensive performance against the Patriots, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed he would be sticking with Gabriel as the starter after the team’s bye week.
“I just want to make the point that we just have to be better in every area. We’ll look at everything we do, including how we’re putting these guys in position to succeed,” Stefanski
Although Stefanski knows the offense has to be better, he’s confident that Gabriel can lead the team to success after the bye week.
Gabriel Vows to be Better After Patriots Loss
Cleveland suffered another lackluster loss on Sunday, and Gabriel knows he and the entire offense have to be better.
Gabriel was disappointed with his play and is confident he will get better.
“We’ve got to get back to work, got to get better,” Gabriel said at the post-game press conference. “It starts with me, and I don’t want to stand up here and say the same old story, so we’ve got to get better, and there are multiple categories, starting with me.”
The rookie quarterback plans to use the bye week as a chance to regroup and start finding answers to have success on offense.
Texans’ DeMeco Ryans Calls Win vs. 49ers One of C.J. Stroud’s Best
The Houston Texans, throughout what would be their third win of the 2025 NFL season, ended up taking notable control of the game from start to finish on the offensive side of the ball.
C.J. Stroud was the leader of those efforts on Houston's scoring unit, and in all, rattled off one of his most productive games of the season.
On 39 total throws, Stroud completed 76% of his passes for a total of 318 yards through the air, to pair with two touchdowns and just one pick. He got nine pass-catchers involved on the day without Nico Collins or Christian Kirk in the mix, and came out to a nice 106.6 passer rating.
He's a considerable reason as to why the Texans had the success that they did against a formidable 49ers squad–– and after the game, his head coach DeMeco Ryans made sure to give him his due credit, saying his performance vs. San Francisco was one of the best in his entire career.
“One of his best games ever,” Ryans said of C.J. Stroud. “When C.J. is locked in, when the quarterback is playing well and C.J. plays well and he’s upbeat and everybody can see he’s going to the right spot with the football, he’s making great decisions, stepping up, escaping the pocket, converting some runs there, converting some third downs, you just see the entire energy, the vibe of our entire sideline just changes. Everybody is looking for the quarterback for that leadership."
DeMeco Ryans Credits C.J. Stroud's Leadership, O-Line in Win vs. 49ers
More than just his production on the field, Stroud maintained his status as a high-end leader on the sidelines for Houston as well, stoking the fire to help the Texans' energy stay high for the entire way, and it certainly showed in the end results.
Stroud also had some major help from his offensive line, a group that allowed zero sacks on the day for the first time this season, and only the fifth time of his career–– the last time being seen during his rookie campaign.
Of course, Ryans made sure to extend his praise to what he saw upfront as well, which led to a smooth and sound offensive operation throughout the way in Houston.
"It’s just about nothing special or nothing grand. It’s just about him remaining disciplined as a quarterback, doing exactly what he’s supposed to do on every given play. When he does that, he makes great decisions and with the offensive line the way they worked today, that’s what you see: one of his best games ever."
"The way he operated today was very clean football and I’m proud of where he is. We just have to continue to stay with this every week.”
Now with the vibes on a good note both offensively and defensively before continuing their extended home stretch, the momentum might be building at a perfect time, with a critical Week 9 battle on the horizon against the Denver Broncos for a chance to elevate back to a .500 record.
It remains to be seen if the Texans will have enough juice to keep their winning ways going, but if Stroud and his protection can remain similar to what was shown against the 49ers, rattling off two straight wins is far from out of the realm of possibilities.
