I don’t know who’s going to be starting for the Browns at quarterback. The draft will be substantially better at that position next year, so the plan may be to tread water for a season, holding off on trying to obtain a long-term solution.
That probably will mean going this year with a combination of perhaps a low-cost free agent and what they’ve already got. They drafted two last year, and even Deshaun Watson is a possibility to start some games.
In regards to their 2025 rookies, their playing styles were remarkably different. With Dillon Gabriel, the tendency is for the ball to come out of his hands quickly – lots of short throws around the line of scrimmage.
With Shedeur Sanders, on the other hand, there’s more willingness to hold onto the ball, hoping to connect on something deep. That kind of approach tends to result in more sacks, fumbles and incompletions, but he also connected on a surprising number of downfield shots.
Making the rounds in Indianapolis, Todd Monken says he wanted to draft Sanders in Baltimore, and that he was impressed by some of the game film he’s seen – it’s been better than what he was expecting.
There were 40 quarterbacks last year who completed at least 100 passes. Of that group, Sanders had the highest percentage of completions over 40 yards – way more than anyone else. Gabriel, on the other hand, was the only quarterback last year who didn’t have a 40-yard completion.
| PERCENTAGE OF 40-YARD GAINS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterback | Com | 40+ | Pct |
| Shedeur Sanders | 120 | 7 | 5.8% |
| Sam Darnold | 323 | 12 | 3.7% |
| C.J. Stroud | 273 | 10 | 3.7% |
| Marcus Mariota | 139 | 5 | 3.6% |
| Josh Allen | 319 | 10 | 3.1% |
| Lamar Jackson | 192 | 6 | 3.1% |
| Jalen Hurts | 294 | 9 | 3.1% |
| Michael Penix | 166 | 5 | 3.0% |
| Dak Prescott | 404 | 12 | 3.0% |
| Jordan Love | 291 | 8 | 2.7% |
| Daniel Jones | 261 | 7 | 2.7% |
| Patrick Mahomes | 315 | 8 | 2.5% |
| Justin Herbert | 340 | 8 | 2.4% |
| J.J. McCarthy | 140 | 3 | 2.1% |
| Aaron Rodgers | 327 | 7 | 2.1% |
| Caleb Williams | 330 | 7 | 2.1% |
| Matthew Stafford | 388 | 8 | 2.1% |
| Baker Mayfield | 343 | 7 | 2.0% |
| Jared Goff | 393 | 8 | 2.0% |
| Carson Wentz | 110 | 2 | 1.8% |
| Kyler Murray | 110 | 2 | 1.8% |
| Kirk Cousins | 166 | 3 | 1.8% |
| Bo Nix | 388 | 7 | 1.8% |
| Trevor Lawrence | 341 | 6 | 1.8% |
| Jayden Daniels | 114 | 2 | 1.8% |
| Spencer Rattler | 174 | 3 | 1.7% |
| Drake Maye | 354 | 6 | 1.7% |
| Tua Tagovailoa | 260 | 4 | 1.5% |
| Mac Jones | 201 | 3 | 1.5% |
| Jaxson Dart | 216 | 3 | 1.4% |
| Tyler Shough | 221 | 3 | 1.4% |
| Bryce Young | 304 | 4 | 1.3% |
| Geno Smith | 302 | 3 | 1.0% |
| Jacoby Brissett | 315 | 3 | 1.0% |
| Cam Ward | 323 | 3 | 0.9% |
| Joe Flacco | 251 | 2 | 0.8% |
| Justin Fields | 128 | 1 | 0.8% |
| Joe Burrow | 173 | 1 | 0.6% |
| Brock Purdy | 197 | 1 | 0.5% |
| Dillon Gabriel | 110 | 0 | 0.0% |
—Ian Allan
