Shedeur Sanders Matches Tom Brady, Bad News for Dillon Gabriel

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Dibyendu Mondal | Last updated May 29, 2025 7:32 AM ET

Shedeur Sanders sparked intense debate after slipping through five rounds of the NFL Draft, with many claiming he wouldn’t make a good NFL quarterback. Now, he seems to be proving his critics wrong.

On Wednesday during the Cleveland Browns’ OTAs, Sanders went a perfect 13-for-13, only the second rookie in this century to do so, after Tom Brady. He also recorded a red-zone touchdown.

His draft rival, rookie Dillon Gabriel, lagged in comparison. Clips from the OTA reveal that one of his pass attempts was swatted away by defensive tackle Mason Graham before the receiver could catch it.

Sanders' improved performance will now surely place him above Gabriel in the depth chart.

Cory Skuza, official OTAs reporter, claimed that Browns coach was left impressed after seeing Sanders' pass to wide receiver Gage Larvadain.

“Cory.. that might just be the best pass I’ve ever seen,” The coach said to him.

In one team-activity clip, Gabriel throws a pass into a dead zone with no receiver nearby. It’s still too early to judge a quarterback’s fit, but repeated mistakes like this could hamper his chances of winning the starting job.

Official: Shedeur Sanders was a perfect 13/13 today at Browns OTAs..

This is only the second time in TWENTY FIVE years that a rookie quarterback has completed every pass

The other rookie? Tom Brady#DawgPound pic.twitter.com/9kxYOPQdh7
— Cory (@coryskuza) May 28, 2025

Veteran Joe Flacco and former Steelers first-rounder Kenny Pickett have logged the bulk of first-team reps, rotating snaps evenly throughout drills.

"We're mixing it up every single day," Head coach Kevin Stefanski said. "We're just trying to get guys exposure to different concepts, those type of things. So, it varies by walkthrough. It can vary by drill. It's not something that we're really – we're not leaning into or worried about the order at this moment."

Before Oregon, Gabriel spent three years at UCF, recording 8037 yards on 554 completions along with 70 touchdowns.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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