Dillon Gabriel threw three touchdown passes in the first half of Cleveland’s 37-13 preseason win over the New England Patriots on Thursday night, giving the second-year quarterback a strong final audition before Sunday’s roster cut-down deadline while leaving Browns coach Todd Monken unwilling to commit to how many quarterbacks the team will keep on its 53-man roster.
The Browns’ 2025 third-round pick started the game with Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders held out. He completed 12 of 15 passes for 186 yards in the first half before giving way to sixth-round rookie Taylen Green in the second. Green completed 5 of 7 passes for 27 yards and added 66 rushing yards on eight carries.
Monken praised Gabriel’s preparation throughout training camp, describing him as a prideful player who comes to work every day and prepares like a professional. The coach said Gabriel understands the offense, operates with confidence on the field and joked that having him is like having a coach on the roster. When asked whether Gabriel and Green would both be on the 53-man roster, Monken said he had not yet had a full conversation with general manager Andrew Berry about roster decisions.
He said after the game that it was frustrating to spend the first two preseason games playing only fourth-quarter snaps, but that having the chance to start Thursday and make the most of the opportunity was what he had been working toward.
The quarterback picture
Deshaun Watson is the Browns’ Week 1 starter. Watson was named the starter by Monken before the preseason. Sanders, the highly drafted rookie, is the designated backup. Gabriel started six games as a rookie last season before sustaining a concussion in Week 11 that opened the door for Sanders to start the final seven games of the year.
Monken said the performance Thursday does not change the plan for Watson or Sanders at the top of the depth chart.
Green, whose training camp featured stretches where he did not receive any practice reps, showed enough athletic ability in the preseason finale that Monken called him a tremendous athlete with high intelligence and said there is a lot to work with in his development.
The roster decision
The Browns have kept four quarterbacks on their initial 53-man roster before. In 2024, they carried Watson, Jameis Winston, Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Tyler Huntley, then released Huntley two days after the deadline. Last year’s camp featured four healthy quarterbacks including Sanders, Gabriel, Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett before they traded Pickett to the Las Vegas Raiders ahead of final cuts.
The Watson-led Browns open the season Sunday with roster decisions due by 6 p.m.
He was selected in the third round, two rounds before Sanders. The strong preseason finale reinforces his value as a developmental backup with starting experience, but whether that value translates to a roster spot behind Watson depends on how Monken and Berry weigh the position group heading into Week 1.
Green’s combination of rushing ability and arm accuracy in limited snaps gives him a different profile from Gabriel, which may factor into whatever decision the Browns ultimately make. Monken did not provide any indication Thursday of which direction the team is leaning.
