The Browns decided upon their young QB
If you read much of my material, you realize that the only time I talk in the first person is in an occasional column called “Thoughts & Jots,” where I discuss whatever NFL subject is on my mind.
In this article, I am discussing the Cleveland Browns selection of QB Dillon Gabriel from Oregon while you and I are sitting on the porch drinking a cold one, while my famous hamburger recipe is on the grill along with some ears of corn. And if you happen to like your cooked beef a certain way, that’s just too bad because they all come off at the same time. This ain’t no restaurant.
RELATED: GABRIEL BRINGS DUAL-THREAT TO THE QB ROOM
I covered my first Senior Bowl in 1994 when Bill Belichick was the head coach of the Cleveland Browns. I wrote for a weekly publication called “The Giants Newsweekly” whose publisher was Dave Klein. For a spell, Dave was one of five writers who had been to every Super Bowl until a knee injury sidelined him from going not long ago. Dave was very well-known in NFL circles, mainly for being the sarcastic one in the room who always asked the most damaging questions. He was also very much to the point and did not care if your feelings got hurt.
In my interviews, I am the opposite. I am not an investigative reporter who is looking to dig up something that will make me well-known or get “clicks.” I don’t feel it is my position to embarrass anyone, and honestly, I don’t see the need for it. I look for the good stuff and focus on questions that I, the fan, want to know. If I get a former Browns player from the 1960s-1980s, I ask them to tell me a Cleveland Municipal Stadium story since the building was pretty much always in need of repairs.
At the Senior Bowl, they always have six quarterbacks. The rosters used to be called “North” and “South,” but they dropped that, and now they are titled “National” and “American.” Reese’s is the top sponsor which is now owned by Hershey’s and there is candy every friggin’ where.
They are a great sponsor for the game, which is owned by a charity.
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This year’s quarterbacks were Will Howard of Ohio State, Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard, Tyler Shough from Louisville, Oregon’s Dillion Gabriel, Jaxson Dart from Ole Miss, Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, and for the first time, an international player in Taylor Elgersma of Wilfrid Laurier (Canada).
On the first day of arrivals, every Ohio State player pulled out of the game, which included Howard. Seth Henigan of Memphis became his replacement. Which was a bummer because I wanted to see some sort of Howard versus Leonard reprise.
Before Senior Bowl week, which invites a ton of elite athletes, these guys were ranked to be drafted in the following rounds – Milroe: 2, Dillion/Leonard/Howard: 3, Dart: 4, Shough: 5, Henigan: 7, Elgersama: UFA. This was based on the Big Board of Pro Football Focus. I know because before I went over to Mobile, Alabama, I did the research on every QB because it was widely known the Browns would be drafting one this year. I wanted to be prepared in case it was one of the dudes I was able to interview.
I did full interviews with Dart, Milroe, Leonard, and Shough, which were all published on Dawgs By Nature.
I took notes on all of them and mentioned several in my daily Senior Bowl diary, which contained the practice sessions from Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
Milroe looked horrible every day. Dart had issues on Day 1 of pads, but then lit up the sessions the remainder of the week. I liked Leonard a lot and thought he was probably the best overall prospect for the week. But I also thought that Gabriel was the only QB that competed that looked like he could start Week 1 of the 2025 season.
RELATED: THURSDAY SENIOR BOWL DIARY
I did not interview Gabriel one-on-one, but was able to get my digital recorder in on two interview sessions with other reporters. And that was frustrating.
Back in the day, as a media person with credentials, you stood next to any and every NFL head coach or assistant coach. If you wanted to watch practice next to Mike Singletary, you just worked your way in that direction and stood next to him. Jimmy Johnson? Right over there. Mean Joe Greene, the defensive line coach of the Arizona Cardinals? Step a little to your left. Jerry Glanville? Bum Phillips? Jeff Fisher? All grouped together with the defense. Buddy Ryan or Mike Ditka? Walk right over to the 7-on-7s.
And after any practice was over, you had plenty of time on the field to get “your guy” and corral him if an NFL scout did not beat you to it first. Then, it was “hands off” or you got a tongue lashing from the scout, reminding you of the pecking order.
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Now, they let you on the field, and you have 10 minutes. 10. I have a list of guys that play certain positions the Browns need, and a list of which rounds they are projected to be selected. There are a total of six practices, but there is also a “media day” where they bring in all the players, and you get to spend some time with your listed guys. Once one roster leaves, they bring in the other squad.
The trick is to be prepared, not be timid (I’m not) or hesitant (please!), and grab your guy and start into your questions without hesitation (I don’t). Having said all this, sometimes your guy is only available in group settings. What this does is cut down the number of questions you can ask yourself. It also means that other reporters are asking questions to fit their storylines that may or may not fit mine.
Having said all this once again, this is how I was able to interview Dillion Gabriel. No one-on-one time, he won’t remember me, and some of his answers did not come from my questions. Which is okay. Other guys ask some very great questions. Others will ask him about the Oregon coaches or his time with the program because they are from that state, and their readers are from that state or school.
So, in reviewing my digital recorder when I was ready to transcribe interviews from the Senior Bowl, I passed over Gabriel’s two interview sessions because I felt some of his answers did not have any significance to Browns fans and our readers.
But great googly moogly, Browns GM Andrew Berry drafted him!
So, I had to find out what he said and transcribe it, no matter what he said. If the Browns didn’t select him, I would have just left it alone. Here is what Gabriel said at the Senior Bowl. Only a few of the questions are mine, while the remainder were from others, while we all huddled together. There aren’t that many questions, but I transcribed what I had.
Gabriel says “you know” quite a bit, so I took all of that out. Burgers are just about done by the way:
Q: What NFL quarterbacks do you enjoy watching or have studied?
A: There’s a bunch. To start, Brock Purdy and Bryce Young. Baker Mayfield, Kyler, Tua. Guys that all are playing really well at the NFL level. But I also admire the guys who have a different playing style, like Patrick Mahomes, just being able to watch him from afar. But I also like Steve Young and Michael Vick. I think from everyone you can learn a little bit, but then you make it your own.
Q: One of your best games of the season was the win over Ohio State. How emotional was that win?
A: Yeah, no better way, you just hit it right on the head. It felt really good about coming in on a Friday in a great atmosphere. We had a great game plan and loved how the guys worked leading up to that one. We knew we could beat them if we played at our best and were good in situational football.
Q: We hear the number 8 has some significance?
A: Marcus Mariota, the man, started it for all of us. Him playing the quarterback position was definitely a connection for me directly. Seeing what he did at Oregon is special and I don’t take it lightly. The number 8 is an honor and a privilege.
Q: How was your Rose Bowl experience?
A: We loved the Rose Bowl. We love warm weather. I think we should play more football on nice grass instead of on the artificial stuff. The more sun the better. Why do we do it to ourselves? Do fans want to sit in the snow and the rain? Let’s just make arenas with domes. Let’s do grass. Let’s do more fireworks at games. Yeah, let’s do that.
Q: What box checking do NFL teams mostly ask of you?
A: I do ask them if they have a true interest or just a reference. Even saying that, I can tell from a lot of conversations. A lot of Zooms, it’s crazy what you can learn in just 30 minutes. And I appreciate the teams that dive into it. You realize that in this football world, somehow, you will always be connected at one point or another. I just try to make the most of it and be present within that moment.
Q: How do you answer the height questions?
A: I think teams should watch the tape. I’ve done it and it hasn’t been a limiting factor for me. I think if you watch and if there are limitations because of height, then I think there is a conversation. But it hasn’t happened in my career, although I am walking into some unknown where the best football players are gathering to compete. I know that there’s going to be a level of me having to improve, but that’s for everyone who is walking into the NFL. I am eager to learn and staying true to that.
Now, the knock-on Gabriel is the fact that he is just 5’-11” tall. The first interview scrum I was in with him, I could not believe how short he was. If they say 5’-11”, I will say “whatever.” All of the other QBs had good height, then I got into his group and I was like, “What?”
He is articulate when he speaks, and he plays well. His 73.2% completion percentage in 2024 ranked second nationally, while his 166.57 passer efficiency rating placed him seventh among FBS quarterbacks.
Perhaps most impressive is his durability and experience – Gabriel started an FBS-record 63 games, amassing 18,722 career passing yards and 155 touchdown passes along the way. He was the Big-10 Most Valuable Player this past year, which is quite a feat.
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But back to his height for a second. Back in the 2012 Senior Bowl, I was in another reporter gathering with one of the game’s quarterbacks, and that dude was short, too. I got in a few questions, and when it was over with, I said to a reporter next to me, “That short guy acts like he is going to play in this league.” The reporter nodded, then said something I can’t remember, but it confirmed my statement. The QB was Russell Wilson! He was 5’-11” and taken in Round 3, then beat out the starter in his rookie year.
You know his story from there. You also know that writers like me think they may know a lot most of the time, and then get embarrassed by being completely wrong.
So, short QBs do make it. Drew Brees, Fran Tarkenton, Sonny Jurgenson, Eddie LeBaron, Len Dawson, Joe Theismann, Doug Flutie, Michael Vick, Kyler Murray, Billy Kilmer – all none-tall guys who made the game work for them.
Here are some of my notes on Gabriel from the Senior Bowl practices:
- Processes the game very well
- Needs to bulk up. The roster says he is 205 pounds. Ouch.
- Very good pre-snap awareness
- Has a compact release, especially in the two-minute drill
- Needs to work on driving the ball better outside the numbers
- Roster says his hands are 9 ¼”. Wonder how he would react to Lake Erie cold?
- Impressed with decision-making, and will take off from a bad pocket
- Excellent pocket mobility
- May be limited physically at the NFL level
- Lacks explosive traits
- Has really good placement on intermediate throws, even when he is moving sideways
- Has no issue throwing it deep and seems to want to
Now that we both have a new cold one and we figured out who absconded with the Stadium Mustard, let’s be real for a second. If Gabriel were 6’-4” and 235 pounds, we would be talking about another player. But the measurables are a bit rough. His wingspan is not comparable to most NFL quarterbacks, and his hands are a bit on the smaller side. He is a very good runner and an even better scrambler. Gabriel seems intelligent, and I have no doubt he will work hard.
The bottom line is that he needs a system built around quick game concepts, where his processing speed and release can shine, along with a timing-based offense. Despite being a very good runner, he is considered a pocket passer, which Kevin Stefanski works best around.
The corn is ready, and I am famished, so let’s get after it. For me, the Browns wanted a developmental quarterback and got one.
We will see how this goes. It is Berry and Stefanski’s call, and they chose him over the others that were available at the time they took Gabriel earlier in the same round, as well as in Round 2.
The good news is that Gabriel is not expected to play this year. Or perhaps the next.