CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Browns used their second pick of the third round on quarterback Dillon Gabriel in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Having played for three different programs through six years, Gabriel finished out at Oregon and led it to an undefeated 13-0 regular season, before losing to Ohio State in College Football Playoffs.
With the Ducks, Gabriel tied for third nationally among quarterbacks in completion percentage (72.9), ranked eighth in passing yards (3,857), and tied for eighth in passing touchdowns (30).
Cleveland’s quarterback room has had trials and tribulations, but is retooling. The Deshaun Watson-era is just about done, Joe Flacco is back in town, and they traded for Kenny Pickett.
The future of this position is uncertain for the Browns, so Gabriel has a chance to fill that void.
Are you concerned about Gabriel’s smaller figure? Or if he can adjust to a West Coast-like offense? Below will provide you an analytical perspective of what to expect from him.
Accuracy
Some might say Oregon’s system is built-in for quarterbacks to ball out, but it takes two for that to happen, especially in the accuracy area.
Gabriel completed 72.9% of his passes with Oregon. Not only did that tie for third in the FBS, but it ties for 19th all time for completion percentage in a single season.
That alone shows just how on-the-money he was by almost each attempt. Finding ways to squeeze his pass through any window possible, to further continue the drive.
There were five such games during his senior year where he eclipsed 72.9% or higher, with the highest being an 85.7% completion rate in a Week 2 win over Boise State.
Turnover-worthy plays
Delivering accuracy intertwines with a low tendency for turnover-worthy plays.
What exactly is a turnover-worthy play? It’s a Pro Football Focus statistic that relates to a pass with a high likelihood of being intercepted, or fumbling while carrying the ball.
As it relates to Gabriel, he had eight TWP’s in 2024, showing an ability for making a play of less risk.
In fact, his eight TWP’s tied for 29th fewest among qualifying quarterbacks. For comparison, former Appalachian State quarterback Joey Aguilar led all quarterbacks in TWP’s with 28.
Downfield completions
The one component of the Browns’ 2024 season was their inability to travel downfield. They were 31st in the NFL in yards gained per play (4.6), per TeamRankings.
Gabriel had that covered during his lone season at Oregon, especially on pass attempts traveling 20 or more yards downfield.
On deep pass attempts, he completed 27 of his 48 passes for eight touchdowns and one interception, and ranked third among quarterbacks in completion percentage (56.3%), per PFF.
There was a void in passes traveling downfield for Cleveland last season, and that led to a lack of yards gained for the offense, and inconsistencies overall.
Gabriel can help that.
Conclusion
There is an opportunity for Gabriel to prove he can provide stability at the quarterback position.
The Browns may have Flacco, but it’s only momentarily with the 40-year old. Pickett is a former first-rounder, and awaits a chance to show what he can do.
Gabriel has the chance to show he’s worth the third-round selection.
Football Insider newsletter free trial: Take a minute and sign up for a free trial of our Football Insider newsletter, featuring exclusive content from cleveland.com’s Browns reporters.
