The Cleveland Browns entered the 2025 NFL Draft with the expectation of selecting a quarterback at some point during the weekend's festivities.
Most expected the Browns to select one somewhat early, with connections being made to the likes of Jalen Milroe, Jaxson Dart, and the still available on Day 3 Shedeur Sanders. Cleveland decided to take an alternate route, selecting Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel with the 94th overall pick.
The reaction to Cleveland's decision to draft Gabriel has been met with confusion, frustration, and disappointment, with a rather large contingent of fans and media alike having a preference for one of the above-mentioned names.
While it may not be who they wanted, the Browns drafting Gabriel in the third round of the draft gives them some much-needed flexibility at the most important position in all of sports.
Gabriel lends flexibility to Browns' QB room ahead of 2025 season
As things stand currently, Cleveland's quarterback room consists of Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and Gabriel. Looking at this group from purely the perspective of this season is the wrong approach here.
This quarterback room was constructed in this manner purposefully. Flacco's return gives the Browns a proven but aging veteran to begin the season as their starter, while Pickett is sort of a lottery ticket to see if they can get more out of him than Pittsburgh could and Philadelphia intended, with him being the primary backup to Jalen Hurts. Gabriel's inclusion gives them something else entirely.
Gabriel should get a chance to play this season, and if things work out and he plays far better than expected, the Browns will have someone to work with moving forward and might even have found their quarterback future at a heavy discount.
Read more: Browns insider reveals Dillon Gabriel was destined to be in Cleveland
It is probably unlikely that this does indeed happen, but it is something that is possible and has to at least be explored in some capacity during this season if the opportunity to do so presents itself.
There is another aspect to Gabriel's selection that has to be mentioned here. With Gabriel being picked just a few selections before the fourth round, the Browns will not necessarily be joined at the hip here. If Gabriel struggles or is not able to play at an acceptable level, they can move in a different direction and take their shot at drafting a quarterback in the first round of next year's draft, when the quarterback class is supposed to be far superior to this year's.
Should Gabriel not look like an NFL starter or even a quarterback a team can manage to get by with, the Browns would at least have a cost-controlled backup on a rookie deal moving forward, and there is value to having that on the roster whether people want to admit it or not.
The most important thing to remember here, not just with the quarterback group but Cleveland's approach this draft, is that they are approaching their roster construction with a multi-year approach. This is a team that has lots of holes with not many available solutions to their biggest problems.
There is a reason why they prioritized their draft selections in the manner they did, and it is because they know they will have better options available to them at those positions in the future.
They are identifying the best available talent that aligns with their positional needs while also allowing for alternative paths to be taken should they present themselves. This is the absolute right way the Browns needed to approach this draft and their overall team-building philosophy.
The immediate results may not be there, but this is about 2026 and beyond rather than 2025. That is when Cleveland has put themselves into a position to genuinely compete. Whether Gabriel will be a part of their plans at that point remains to be seen, but he will remain in the conversation until he proves otherwise.