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Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
'Me vs. me': Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel focused inward in Browns QB competition
BEREA — Dillon Gabriel went to bed on the evening of April 25 as the only rookie quarterback on the Browns roster. By the time he went to bed the next day, the former Oregon quarterback had company. It wasn't just any company, either. It was the company of Colorado's Shedeur Sanders, one of the highest-profile players in the draft. Advertisement 'Yeah, I love it," Gabriel said on the second day of Browns rookie minicamp Saturday. "I love it because of who it is. I think just for us both, you can learn from one another. But also it's not just us two in the room. At least for right now it is. But going into the year, Kenny [Pickett], Joe [Flacco], and even Deshaun [Watson], just a bunch of guys who played a bunch of ball that we can all learn from one another.' Right now, the only two who are together are the two rookies. Pickett and Flacco, the other two healthy quarterbacks on the Browns roster, will be back next week when the veterans return to continue the offseason program. Getting to know the other quarterbacks on the roster will come in due time. For now, the two rookies who have only watched each other from afar through their college careers are now watching each other from close quarters. "Cool, normal," Sanders said of Gabriel. "Yeah, it's been normal. He's a real cool guy overall. You could tell, he always has a great mood, he's always in a good mood — I've only been around him two days though — but he always has a great mood. But overall I can tell he is a pretty good person." Advertisement For Gabriel, the moment Sanders was drafted changed the dynamic of his own acclamation to the professional ranks. It wasn't just about having to find a way to split reps during the course of minicamp, which the Browns managed to do by giving both quarterbacks ample chances with extensive 7-on-7 periods. It was about having to deal with an extra layer of attention on the rookie minicamp from outside parties. With Sanders' presence came multiple national outlets over the course of the two days that were open to the media. Gabriel, though, has been in his own spotlight — admittedly a much different one — during his six seasons in college. Playing at places like Oklahoma and Oregon, where he led the Ducks to a Big Ten championship and a 13-1 season, will manage to put the glare on a player, especially a quarterback. Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders (12) watches quarterback Dillon Gabriel (5) during day two of NFL rookie minicamp at the Cleveland Browns training facility on Saturday, May 10, 2025, in Berea, Ohio. Those kind of distractions are ones Gabriel's approach manages to block out. Advertisement 'Yeah, I mean, for me, life of simplicity is a life full of focus," Gabriel said. "Life of complexity comes with life with distractions. But, for me, I'm focused. I'm simple. I know what I want to accomplish." What both quarterbacks ultimately want to accomplish is to end up as the Browns' starting quarterback. Very little, if anything, done on the field during the rookie minicamp will determine how that competition ends up. The additions of Pickett and Flacco next week during the offseason program won't do it, either. It's something that will extend into training camp, at which point someone is going to end up getting the job. That makes the approach to the whole process one of an inward focus, not an outward one. Advertisement "I just feel like in life and everything, it's just me vs. me," Sanders said. "I can't control any other decision besides that. So I just try to be my best self at all times." Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@ Read more about the Browns at Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel focused inward in Browns QB quest
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Commanders Jayden Daniels Ranked Among NFL's Best Quarterbacks
No rookie quarterback in NFL History enjoyed the kind of success and turnaround that Washington Commanders star Jayden Daniels enjoyed last season. In 2023, Washington won just four games and had one of the worst teams in the league. The arrival of Daniels gave the Commanders a 12-win season and their first trip to the conference title game in 30 years. Advertisement So great was Daniels' rise to dominance that he won the Offensive Rookie of the Year award, and is now considered a top 10 quarterback going into the 2025 season. Bleacher Report writer Brad Gagnon ranked the top 12 starting quarterbacks in the league, and Daniels clocked in at No. 8, behind the likes of Jared Goff, Jalen Hurts, and Justin Herbert. "After an OROY season in which he posted similar numbers to Stroud in 2023 while leading Washington to the playoffs, Jayden Daniels is essentially the Texans QB without the sophomore slump," Gagnon wrote."Only Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, and Joe Burrow posted higher QBRs, and Daniels was consistently the man in clutch situations despite a good-not-great supporting cast. "That said, we can't assume the LSU product will keep it rolling in 2025. He could encounter obstacles just as Stroud did, even though the Commanders have smartly added to his arsenal as well as his offensive line this offseason." Advertisement It's very rare to see a quarterback ranked in the top 10 after their first year in the league. No one deserves that more than Daniels at this point, though. And he has the Commanders thinking Super Bowl for the first time in decades. Related: Commanders Reign Of Terror Finish Reveals Key NFL Fact Related: Commanders Protecting 'Greatest Asset' Earning Power Ranking Praise
