Browns’ Dillon Gabriel clarifies ‘entertainers’ and ‘competitors’ comment, wasn’t referencing Shedeur Sanders

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PHILADELPHIA — Life as a starting quarterback in the NFL is tough. Dillon Gabriel found out the hard way, on and off the field.

On an afternoon where Gabriel was presented with the opportunity to emerge as a player in the Cleveland Browns quarterback competition, the third-round rookie had to maneuver his way through damage control. 

Of course, it was a quote taken out of context. 

Speaking with CBS Sports reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala, Gabriel was asked about his comfortability in front of a camera. The poised Gabriel was authentic in his answer, a harmless and fun response. 

“There are entertainers and there are competitors, and I totally understand that,” Gabriel said. “My job is to compete and that’s what I’m doing…It’s something I’ll get used to, and I just want to be the best teammate that I can, and create an environment where we can all get our best work in.”

In this age of social media, the belief was Gabriel was taking a backhanded compliment at rookie teammate Shedeur Sanders — who came into training camp with a lot of hype and a lot of fanfare. Some believed the “entertainer” comment was toward Sanders. 

Gabriel is a 24-year-old rookie, but refused to had more fuel to the fire. There wasn’t a fire to start. 

“Well, all you in this room are entertainers and you have a job to do and I respect it, right?” Gabriel said subtly. “And I’m a competitor so I have a job to do as well. And I think just understanding that that’s how I’ve lived by, and I’ve said that multiple times, so definitely not a new quote, but something that I’ve definitely said before.”

The “entertainer” Gabriel was talking about was the media, referring to the reporters, radio hosts, and content creators who have a job to do. Gabriel has been a starting quarterback for all six years in college at three Power 5 Schools. He knows the drill.

“First off, I am all about our team, you know what I mean? And each other. I would never make that [comment],” Gabriel said. “I’ve said it before, that’s why it’s interesting. 

“But for me, I’ve explained it, entertainers are you all. A competitor, that’s what I am along with all my teammates. We both have jobs to do. That’s it.”

The clarity of those comments capped a wild day for Gabriel, an opportunity to prove to the Browns he deserves to be under consideration for the starting quarterback job. The day provided more questions than answers. 

Eagles-Browns preseason takeaways: Dillon Gabriel has solid day in debut; Philly appears to have rookie star

Jeff Kerr

Gabriel’s up-and-down day

The Browns gave Gabriel the opportunity to start in Saturday’s preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles, the first opportunity for Gabriel to showcase to the coaching staff he’s not a long shot in the quarterback competition. This was the first preseason action for Gabriel, who was working his way back from a hamstring injury that significantly pinned the third-round rookie down the depth chart over the past few weeks. 

Despite some of the results that will end up in the box score, Gabriel wasn’t close to the player he showcased in the joint practices earlier in the week. He finished 13 of 18 for 143 yards with an interception, a 75-yard return for a touchdown by Andrew Mukuba, ending his day with a 72.2 passer rating. 

The performance was better than the numbers. 

Gabriel had some nice throws with the football, especially on third down. He finished 6 of 6 for 51 yards on third down, finishing with a 102.1 passer rating. Gabriel was 5 for 5 on third down in the first quarter, consistently moving the chains and having more than enough time to get rid of the football. 

“We’re just trying to build continuity and build consistency,” Gabriel said. “So for me, it’s all growing moments in the grand scheme of things. I’m a guy that sees it long term. I think you see a day or two, or two weeks, but I think the true growth is within months or years and you see a player grow within that. I think that’s where you see guys definitely flourish.”

The Browns scored on three of five of Gabriel’s possessions, but the day wasn’t perfect. In addition to the interception on an ill-advised throw while rolling out in coverage, Gabriel botched a snap which led to a fumble and a giveaway (he had two in the half). He was also sacked twice. 

The giveaways were what Gabriel preferred to focused on, as the negative plays stood out. 

“Just continue to learn from some things that can’t happen, like turnovers,” Gabriel said. “But I think other than that, there are flashes of being very consistent and clean as an offense…I’m a gunslinger and I’m going to continue to sling it and be aggressive that way. 

“Like I said, that can’t happen, and we’ve got to throw it away in that situation. But I think as a unit and us coming together, I want to help my teammates out by being better and we all know that it’s us coming together to go do that.”

Did Gabriel help himself in the QB competition?

The two giveaways were indicators Gabriel likely isn’t what the Browns are looking for out of their starting quarterback at the moment. While Gabriel was able to get the mental reps during his absence, he missed too many practices to earn the starting job in Week 1.

That’s fine with him.

“I’m not worried about that at all,” Gabriel said. “Just focus on one day at a time. At the end of the day, some decision will be made that’s best for the team and that’ll be it. 

“So I’m just focused on being the best version of myself and contributing to our team to be the best. That takes every single day and one day at a time. So, way down the road.”

Asking a third-round rookie who missed a significant portion of training camp to start for this franchise is a tall task. Gabriel can raise his stock over the next couple weeks by putting in good practices and preparing to get the call to start later in the season, but the hourglass is winding down. 

Did Gabriel outperform Sanders’ Week 1 preseason start? Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski isn’t looking at his rookies that way. 

“I’m not going to compare our players, other than to say I’m pleased with where they both are in their progression,” Stefanski said. “They have the mentality that they’re going to get better every single day, which I appreciate. That’s really where our focus is.”

A decision is coming soon

The Browns will have an interesting week ahead of them, as Stefanski admitted after the game the starting quarterback competition is nearing an end. The final preseason game against the Los Angeles Rams will be treated as a dress rehearsal, as the Browns will run a regular season schedule.

That indicates a starting quarterback may be selected as soon as this week, along with where things stand on the depth chart. 

“We will make a game plan now. We won’t run every play that we put in this week, but I want the guys to get used to getting a gameplan, new plays, evolving the offense, defense, and special teams,” Stefanski said. “In terms of who plays and that type of thing, we’ll talk about that later.”

Stefanski also isn’t sure if all the quarterbacks will be ready for the final preseason game either. The Browns return to practice on Tuesday, but Stefanski will have a post-game press conference on Sunday. 

Perhaps he’ll make the call on the starting quarterback then. Regardless, he liked what he saw from Gabriel. 

“I thought the operation was good,” Stefanski said. “When you go into these games, I know that’s kind of boring, but that’s what you’re looking for from the quarterbacks to orchestrate, get guys in and out of the huddle, make the right calls, send the motions, all those types of things.”

“So I thought he did a good job with that. He’s got plenty that he’s going to clean up.”

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