Dillon Gabriel is in the thick of a quarterback battle in the NFL just after being selected in the draft.
The Cleveland Browns didn’t just draft the former Oregon star. They also selected Shedeur Sanders — easily the most popular signal-caller in the draft — after they picked Gabriel.
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The two aren’t alone in a race to become the starter, either. Kenny Pickett, Joe Flacco and Deshaun Watson (though out with injury) are all also on the roster.
The club is in quite the quarterback hole after paying Watson superstar-level money for production that hasn’t matched that dollar value.
Gabriel and Sanders, both being rookies, are cheap, high-upside options, though neither is yet solidified as a front-runner as the starting signal-caller.
Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com recently revealed quite an interesting bit after the Browns’ rookie minicamp. Both Gabriel and Sanders remain behind Pickett as the front-runners for the quarterback gig.
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“It’s a tough call before we’ve even seen the first practice of organized team activities, but I know Kenny Pickett heads in as the frontrunner to win the starting job at the outset,” Cabot wrote Sunday. “He’ll take the initial first-team reps in OTAs and probably the mandatory minicamp, and it seems like it’s his job to try to keep for now.”
Gabriel finished his storied college football career — which saw stops at UCF and Oklahoma — at Oregon, where he led the Ducks to an impressive campaign that ended in the playoffs.
The Browns then selected Gabriel with the No. 94 overall pick in round three of the NFL Draft. They then drafted Sanders in round five, which sparked quite a talking point.
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The former Oregon star is in the thick of a quarterback race, though he’s got serious potential to land real snaps under center in his rookie season.
While he’s not in the lead for the starting role yet, minicamp was short and there are plenty more opportunities to impress.
