Cleveland Browns Update After Kenny Pickett Injury: Dillon Gabriel Opportunity?

With the Pickett injury and Deshaun Watson still being out due to his torn achilles suffered last season, Gabriel is now one of three active quarterbacks for the Browns. He is joined by Joe Flacco and Shedeur Sanders. 

Flacco appears to be the leading candidate for the starting job in Week One and Pickett having this setback further strengthens his case. 

ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter went on the Pat McAfee Show on Monday and talked about how the Pickett injury will affect things.

“Kenny Pickett injured his hamstring and is basically going to revaluate it later this week. He hurt it at the end of Saturday’s practice. He had a couple of really good practices and looked pretty strong…I think he’s going to miss a little bit of time here,” Schefter said. “That would seem to indicate that Joe Flacco…that would give him the advantage.”

“You got the two rookie quarterbacks (Gabriel and Sanders),” Schefter said. “We may see Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders go out this summer and light it up during preseason and be like ‘woah, that guy can play and I want to see more of that in the next preseason game.’”

Schefter went on to say that it is very rare for a middle round rookie quarterback like Gabriel or Sanders to win the starting job based on the history of the league. Russell Wilson in 2012 with the Seattle Seahawks and Dak Prescott in 2015 are the two examples Schefter used of a mid-round draft selection being the Week One starting for their team. 

Could a Rookie Start at Quarterback for the Browns in 2025?

Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders were both taken in the 2025 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. This came as a surprise to many around the league that they would use two mid-round selections on the quarterback position.

Now, both are in a quarterback battle in a crowded quarterback room. They are joined by Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and Deshaun Watson. Watson's return is unknown after his torn achilles, while Pickett now has suffered a what appears to be minor injury.

The quarterback that looks to be the starting in Week One is Joe Flacco. However, this does not rule out one of the rookies from potentially being the starter by the end ofd the season. The performance and health or both Flacco and Pickett will play a massive role in if Gabriel or Sanders could be a starting at some point in 2025.