The Cleveland Browns enter the season with plenty of attention, having drafted two rookies in the 2025 NFL Draft, including Shedeur Sanders.

The Browns enter the season with Joe Flacco as the starting quarterback, with Dillon Gabriel as the backup, and Sanders as the third-stringer. Although Sanders is the third-stringer, the Browns’ assistant general manager, Catherine Hickman, praised Sanders, saying ‘he’s dedicated’ to getting better.

“He works at his craft, he’s passionate, he’s dedicated to it,” she said. “He puts the time in, and those are really the things that you can really hang your hat on when it comes to these young players. He’s shown growth on the field. It’s a super small sample size. So, we’ve got to continue to be intentional with his plan and work with him just like we will do with every rookie.”

Hickman says she’s been impressed with Sanders’ growth through his first training camp and preseason. Yet, despite being impressed, it wasn’t enough to win the starting or backup job.

However, even though Sanders is the third-string quarterback for Cleveland, he could very well get playing time this season.

Browns Assistant GM Praises Gabriel

Not only did Hickman praise Sanders, but she also praised Gabriel.

Gabriel is the Browns’ backup quarterback as a rookie, as Cleveland selected him in the third round. In preseason and training camp, Gabriel showed some flashes of success, and Hickman says off the field, the rookie has impressed the staff.

“Dillon has been super impressive on and off the field,” she said. “He is extremely, extremely mature, professional. He has a process on how he goes about his craft, and it shows. There’s a lot to work on as you enter this league as a young quarterback, but Dillon has really put the time in and worked with our coaches. So I really look forward to seeing his trajectory and how he collaborates with both our coaches and PD (player development) staff.”

Gabriel went 25-for-37 for 272 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception in the preseason for the Browns.

Although Flacco won the starting job, all signs point to Gabriel and Sanders getting playing time this season at some point.

Browns Owner Expects All 3 QBs to Play

Despite Flacco winning the starting quarterback job, it appears unlikely he will start every game for the Browns.

Cleveland could have the top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft and could draft their franchise quarterback. With that, Browns owner Jimmy Haslam said back in July that coach Kevin Stefanski knows the team needs to see all three quarterbacks play.

“Absolutely, absolutely,” Halsam said. “Kevin is aware of that. He knows how important quarterback is and he and Andrew talk about those kinds of things all the time. It’s a daily, ongoing conversation.”

If Cleveland gets out to a slow start, Gabriel and Sanders should very well get some starts and playing time to prove they can be the long-term answer at QB for the Browns.

Cleveland opens their 2025 NFL season at home on Sept. 7 against the Cincinnati Bengals.