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By Michael Gallagher
Sports Content Coordinator
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The result was still the same, but the Cleveland Browns offense showed a bit more life under rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel in Sunday’s 21-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings than it had at any point this season under Joe Flacco, who was traded to the Cincinnati Bengals on Tuesday morning.
After back-to-back weeks of less than 250 yards of total offense, the Gabriel-led Browns put up 322 yards of total offense in Week 5, but perhaps more importantly, they didn’t turn the ball over — something that had become a recurring theme with Flacco, who threw six interceptions and fumbled twice in his first four starts.
Though Gabriel threw for 190 yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions — a noticeable improvement — Cleveland still struggled to generate explosive plays. Gabriel had just two passes longer than 20 yards, and he averaged just 5.8 yards per completion.
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Some were encouraged by Gabriel’s NFL debut, while others, including national analyst Bomani Jones, weren’t as impressed. In fact, Jones stated on his “The Right Time” podcast that Gabriel’s start was so underwhelming that it’s actually an indictment on Shedeur Sanders that he wasn’t able to beat out Gabriel to start behind Flacco.
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“Dillon Gabriel looks like he’s playing with his big brother’s friends,” Jones stated. “He doesn’t seem like he should be out there playing football. But I’m going to say this, though — if Shedeur Sanders can’t get himself on the field for the team Dillon Gabriel plays for, maybe he should go do a podcast. This young man here is not going to play a whole lot of NFL football.”
“… I don’t know what you got to do to get there. But as of right now, they don’t think you’re capable of being Dillon Gabriel. I wouldn’t be talking to nobody either. … I’d be mad as a (expletive) if you were telling me I couldn’t do that.”
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The Browns are tied for the third-fewest passes of 20 or more yards this season (10) — only the New Orleans Saints (five) and Arizona Cardinals (seven) have fewer — and they’re one of just two teams, along with the New York Jets, without a passing play of 40 or more yards.
If it’s explosive plays Cleveland wants, then perhaps Sanders is only a game or two away from making his first start too.
During his two seasons at Colorado, playing under his father Deion Sanders, Shedeur averaged 8.1 yards per pass attempt and 11.1 yards per completion.
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