It would not be much of a surprise for cranky fans on social media to be calling for head coaches to make major moves with the roster, particularly when the team is bad and the even more so when the quarterback is struggling. For the Browns, the team is bad and the quarterback, rookie Dillon Gabriel, is struggling–and it doesn’t help that Shedeur Sanders is waiting for his chance.
But for coach Kevin Stefanski, the calls for the team to make a move away from Gabriel are, of course, more complicated. The team also has fellow rookie Sanders on hand, and Sanders entered the season as one of the most-watched additions to any roster, after having suffered the most dramatic fall in NFL draft history, going from a projected Top 10 pick, all the way to the fifth round.
It’s not just fans calling for Sanders. It’s former players and prominent media members, too. But not only is Stefanski saying he is sticking with Gabriel, he defended the way the rookie has played to this point.
Browns’ Stefanski Defends Dillon Gabriel
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Stefanski was asked, “What’s been missing in these four starts,” from Gabriel, a player the team professed to be excited to add at the draft in April.
Stefanski is backing Gabriel to the hilt, even saying he will stick with him through the bye week, and suggesting that the offense’s struggles don’t fall on the quarterback.
“Playing good on offense is about 11 guys on the field, and us as coaches doing our job,” he said. “Obviously, young players will learn in each outing that they’re out there – I think Dillon will continue to learn, will continue to get better, but it’s really an entire offensive type of thing where we all need to better.”
GettyQuarterback Dillon Gabriel of the Cleveland Browns.
Shedeur Sanders Getting Increasing National Backing
Maybe, but the reality is that in four games, Gabriel has completed 85 of 142 passes, just a 59.9% completion rate, and is gaining just 4.9 yards per attempt. His quarterback rating is 78.4 and Pro Football Focus has graded him at a 46.5, which is 36th out of 36 quarterbacks to get grades this season.
Former NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho pointed out on his “Speakeasy” podcast Sunday night that Stefanski’s unwillingness to give Sanders a shot could ultimately cost him his job, because if Sanders gets a chance and does play well, the player will know he never had the coach’s backing.
“Stefanski, you look dumb,” Acho said.
The Browns and their coach were also called out by former veteran lineman Richie Incognito, who said, “Gabriel played like (expletive). You don’t take the bye week to evaluate, ‘Hey, should we give this kid (Sanders) a chance? Is he going to give us a shot in the arm?’ … This situation stinks. There’s some bull (expletive) going on.”
Browns Say Shedeur Sanders Dealing With Back Injury
Stefanski did say that Sanders is dealing with a back injury that limited him coming into Sunday and was part of the decision to not have him suit up for that game. But the presumption, still, is that Sanders should be ready to go in Week 10.
“He obviously came in Saturday with his back injury,” Stefanski said. “We were hopeful that he’d be able to move around well enough to suit up on Sunday. But, put him through a pre-game warm up, and obviously just didn’t feel like he was ready to play, but he’s getting better every day and I’m hopeful that he’ll continue to improve.”
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Browns Defend Dillon Gabriel Amid Mounting Shedeur Sanders Calls appeared first on Heavy Sports.