Browns OC opens up about 'unique' Dillon Gabriel, Shedeur Sanders situation

The Cleveland Browns trading Week 1 starting quarterback Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals on Oct. 7 left rookies Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders as the top two signal-callers on the Cleveland roster. 

Gabriel has since gone 1-2 as Cleveland's QB1, while Sanders currently isn't receiving reps with the starting offense during midweek practices. While speaking with reporters on Thursday, Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees opened up about the difficult task of having to do everything possible to get a pair of first-year quarterbacks ready to face live defenses in meaningful games. 

Are Dillon Gabriel, Shedeur Sanders both prepared to play against Patriots? 

"It is a unique situation," Rees acknowledged, per Tony Grossi of ESPN Cleveland/The Land on Demand. "I don’t know how many times it’s probably happened, but probably not a lot. And we have the right two guys, mentally, right now in their demeanor, and how they’re prepping, and how they’re coming to work every day. I think we’ve put together a good plan, starting with [head coach Kevin Stefanski], and pouring through the rest of the staff to make sure that those guys feel prepared to go play on Sunday."

To date, Gabriel's only regular-season win came against a Miami Dolphins opponent that committed four turnovers in Cleveland's 31-6 victory back on Oct. 19. Pro Football Reference stats show that Gabriel enters the weekend ranked 31st in the league among qualified players with a 28.8 adjusted QBR and last with an average of 5.1 yards gained per pass attempt. He failed to tally a touchdown over his last two starts. 

How Browns are getting Shedeur Sanders ready without first-team reps

A previous report revealed the Browns will want Sanders to have "a full week of practice and a game plan built for him" before he makes his first regular-season start. That's all well and good, but it also doesn't mean much regarding Cleveland's game at the New England Patriots (5-2) this coming Sunday. 

"There’s a lot of walkthrough reps that go around," Rees responded when asked how the Browns are getting Sanders ready to play without giving him first-team work during practices. "There’s a lot of learning opportunities that go around. There’s reps built into practice that are still game plan reps that might not be with the first group all the time. So, definitely using all the resources we have to make sure that we maximize it."

The 2-5 Browns enter their bye after the Patriots game and theoretically could use that break to make the switch to Sanders for Cleveland's matchup at the New York Jets on Nov. 9. In short, Gabriel may be facing a must-win situation when he takes the Gillette Stadium field this Sunday.