Cleveland Browns quarterback Dillon Gabriel (5) throws as quarterback Shedeur Sanders (12) looks on during NFL rookie minicamp at the Cleveland Browns training facility on Friday, May 9, 2025, in Berea, Ohio. Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Shedeur Sanders 'Better' Option for Cleveland Browns Than Dillon Gabriel, Per Analyst

Originally posted on Oregon Ducks on SI | By Zach Dimmitt | Last updated May 20, 2025 8:50 AM ET

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Former Oregon Ducks quarterback Dillon Gabriel is continuing his journey of fighting for the starting job on the Cleveland Browns next season.

A third-round pick by the Browns in the 2025 NFL Draft, Gabriel already got things rolling at rookie minicamp against fellow quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who is the star-studded name in a quarterback room that also features veterans Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett.

The Browns still have a few months to decide who their starter will be, but FOX Sports' Collin Cowherd thinks that if the Browns go with one of the rookies, Sanders is the better choice.

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“Shedeur is 6-2, historically accurate, and I have seen him standing around normal sized people. He’s big. He’s a big 6-2,” Cowherd said on "The Herd." “Mahomes is 6-1.5. Aaron Rodgers, you never think about his size. He’s 6-1. Big calves, big wrists. 6-3, Matt Stafford. 6-4, Jared Goff. 6-6, Joe Flacco. Eli was 6-5, Peyton was 6-5.5 or whatever he was. Dillon Gabriel is noticeably smaller and thinner than Bo Nix, and Bo Nix is not an ideal size in the NFL. He is a very, very small guy. Shedeur Sanders, he’s much bigger and much better.”

Gabriel has emphasized that he's only worried about beating himself every day instead of focusing on outside things he can't control.

"With competition, how I approach it, I'm trying to beat myself yesterday," Gabriel said, per the Browns team website. "Just any chance I can be one percent better than that. That's how I look at it. And naturally – you play the quarterback position, only one guy can play. So, there's naturally going to have competition at all levels. And that's why we're in this game, we love it. And if you're a competitor, you love it and you run towards it. So that's what I do."

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Sanders has echoed a similar approach, telling reporters that he's only focused on improving himself and not proving the doubters wrong.

“My job here isn’t to prove people wrong, I’m proving myself right,” Sanders said, per the Browns team website. “I fully believe it. What those people say, that’s just their opinions. I don’t truly care. They don’t really live in my mental space about that type of stuff. It really doesn’t do anything for me.”

Gabriel spent just one year at Oregon but led the Ducks to an undefeated regular season, a Big Ten title and the No. 1 overall seed in the College Football Playoff. Oregon's season ended at the hands of the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Rose Bowl, as the 41-21 defeat marked the Ducks' only loss of the 2024 campaign.

Gabriel will likely make his preseason debut when the Browns begin their three-game exhibition slate on Aug. 8 against the Carolina Panthers.