Joe Flacco trade gives Browns rookie Dillon Gabriel lesson about life in the NFL

Roughly one week after Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski benched veteran quarterback Joe Flacco in favor of rookie Dillon Gabriel, the Browns surprisingly traded Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals.

While speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Gabriel summed up his debut pro season while revealing his reaction to the Flacco trade. 

Dillon Gabriel "not surprised" by Browns' trade of Joe Flacco

"I’m not surprised by anything at this point in the NFL," Gabriel explained, per the Browns' website. "It’s the day and age we live in, so anything can really happen."

Gabriel may or may not have been referencing how the Browns made him the 94th overall pick of the 2025 NFL Draft before Cleveland acquired former Colorado star signal-caller Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round of the player-selection process. While Sanders is seen as the bigger star and better prospect in the eyes of many fans, Gabriel has been the preferred rookie among Stefanski and Co. from the start of springtime workouts through this fall. 

It appears that current practice squad quarterback Bailey Zappe and not Sanders will serve as Gabriel's primary backup when the 1-4 Browns play at the Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1) this coming Sunday. 

"I don’t handle any of that," Gabriel said about roster decisions. "I’ll leave that to coaches. But we got a great room, bunch of guys that either played or, you know, have the potential to play. And I think we just come together as a team, and the importance is trying to find ways to win. But I’ll leave that with coach."

What Dillon Gabriel learned from Joe Flacco

Shortly after news of the trade went public, Sanders mentioned that Flacco "was definitely somebody I leaned on for wisdom" and "helped me a lot." On Wednesday, Gabriel was asked what he learned from the 40-year-old quarterback. 

"I think just overall his process, how he’s been about his business from day one, really," Gabriel said. "How he approaches meetings, practice, you know, taking care of his body, kind of his daily routine. So, I think you pick up on that as you’re around people and try to make it your own and learn how you can improve your routine. But more importantly, just the friendship and the person he is. Although there is an age gap, I think just being able to connect and have those conversations, I appreciate those a lot."

As of Thursday morning, ESPN BET had the Browns as 6.5-point road underdogs for the upcoming matchup at Pittsburgh's Acrisure Stadium.