Browns announce Dillon Gabriel move before Jets game

The Cleveland Browns are riding high on their win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on "Thursday Night Football," and it's an exciting thing for quarterback Deshaun Watson and the crew. But there's another quarterback who hasn't been able to participate this season. Now, that may be changing.

Dillon Gabriel is getting closer to a return for the Browns, and that could force the team to make a quarterback decision. On Tuesday, days before the New York Jets game, the Browns announced that Gabriel and defensive tackle Kalia Davis are both designated to return to practice from injured reserve.

Neither player is automatically back on the active roster, though. Cleveland has 21 days to decide whether to activate them. If the Browns don't make that move during the window, the players will remain on injured reserve for the rest of the season.

Cleveland Browns' Dillon Gabriel is getting closer to a return

For Gabriel, this is an important step after an injury forced him onto injured reserve during the team's roster last cuts at the end of August. The Browns placed him on IR right before the regular season. Davis was placed on injured reserve on Sept. 1 after suffering a quadriceps injury.

Now Gabriel can practice again, giving the Browns a chance to see exactly where he is physically before deciding what they should do.

So, the Browns have a quarterback decision on the horizon. Watson is obviously performing well, and Shedeur Sanders waits in the wings. Gabriel is returning to a quarterback room that has continued moving ahead without him, so the team has to figure out how he fits into this situation.

The question for Cleveland isn't whether Gabriel can take Watson's job, of course. Watson is clearly doing well this season. But, the question is where Gabriel fits behind him. That makes his competition with Sanders more important. Gabriel had the stronger preseason by the numbers, nailing 17 of 24 passes for 209 yards with three touchdowns, one interception and a 119.6 passer rating. Sanders notched 15 of 22 passes for 153 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, finishing with a 65.2 passer rating.

The good news for the Browns is that they don't have to rush him back onto the 53-man roster. They have three weeks to watch him practice and determine if he's ready.