Browns make quarterback decision for Vikings game

Tony Rizzo of ESPN Cleveland raised eyebrows when he reported on Tuesday that sources told him the 1-3 Cleveland Browns planned to start rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel over struggling veteran Joe Flacco for this coming Sunday's game versus the 2-2 Minnesota Vikings.

On Wednesday morning, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network and Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer shared that Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski was making the quarterback change for the first Sunday of October. The Browns subsequently announced that Gabriel will be their QB1 for the Vikings game. 

What was "the last straw" for Browns regarding Joe Flacco?

According to Cabot, "the last straw" for Stefanski and Co. regarding the Browns' quarterback situation was Cleveland's 34-10 blowout loss at the Detroit Lions this past Sunday. Flacco tossed two interceptions and lost a fumble on a strip sack in that contest, and he entered Wednesday leading the NFL with eight turnovers on the season. 

Additionally, ESPN stats show that the Browns ended Week 4 ranked 31st in the league with an average of 14 points scored per game. Nevertheless, people within the organization were allegedly split on whether or not now was the right time for the club to turn to a third-round draft pick who was supposed to learn about life in the NFL as a backup through the fall. 

Is Shedeur Sanders closer to seeing the field after Joe Flacco benching?

Some previously speculated that rookie and fifth-round draft pick Shedeur Sanders could serve as Gabriel's primary backup if the Browns made the change this week. However, Cabot reported that Flacco and not Sanders will be Cleveland's QB2. 

"Over the course of training camp, joint practices and the preseason, Gabriel demonstrated his ability to move the offense down the field, operate in the pocket and connect with receivers – all factoring into the initial decision for Gabriel to serve as the backup," Kelsey Russo of the Browns' website said about why Gabriel has been ahead of Sanders since Week 1.

Earlier in the week, former NFL head coach and current ESPN analyst Rex Ryan suggested he had reasons to "know" that Sanders needed to put in more work behind the scenes in order to climb up the Cleveland depth chart. Ryan also said Sanders "should be embarrassed that" he's not Cleveland's starter as of the first week of October. 

Shortly after news of Flacco's benching went public, ESPN BET had the Browns as 3.5-point underdogs for the matchup against the Vikings.