The Week 5 Vikings at Browns Game Sees a Veteran Quarterback Benched
Once upon a time, Joe Flacco (the No. 18 selection in 2008) and Carson Wentz (the No. 2 selection in 2016) were drafted to be franchise quarterbacks. Both are now journeyman backups.
Or, at least, that’s been a common description in recent seasons.
The Vikings at Browns game in Week 5 got a bit spicier due to the news that emerged from Cleveland. Flacco had been the starter but that’s no longer the case. Per Zac Jackson of The Athletic, Kevin Stefanski is going to hand things over to Dillon Gabriel: “The Cleveland Browns are making a quarterback change. Rookie Dillon Gabriel will start Sunday when the Browns play the Minnesota Vikings in London, the team announced Wednesday.”
The Vikings at Browns Sees Joe Flacco on the Bench
Kevin Stefanski is a very good football coach.
After all, the Browns head coach landed his current job after a long history working for the Vikings. He eventually climbed up to being Minnesota’s offensive coordinator, proving so successful that he got a promotion elsewhere. Mike Zimmer’s Sysiphean task of finding a lasting offensive coordinator continued onward while Stefanski moved to Ohio.
Recent years have featured Cleveland working through a disaster of its own making. Trading for Deshaun Watson — and then handing over that insane contract — was awful from the start. Somehow, it has grown more awful the more time passes.
Cleveland has, in a surprise to nobody outside of the brain trust in Cleveland, had to pivot at quarterback. Joe Flacco was brought to town as a steady old fella who has done much in his career (including winning a Super Bowl). The 2025 NFL Draft then offered Dillon Gabriel (3rd Round, No. 94 overall) and Shedeur Sanders (5th Round, No. 144 overall).
Based on name recognition, Sanders should get the start. Based on draft placement, Gabriel should get the start. So, Gabriel it is.
Gabriel’s college journey was winding in nature. From 2019-2021, the quarterback did his work for UCF. He then took his talents over to Oklahoma for 2022-2023, performing well while there. Finally, the 2024 season involved leading Oregon, a great college program. Gabriel’s final season involved completing 72.9% of his passes for 3,857 yards, 30 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions.
The Vikings are working through their own back and forth between a young quarterback and an older one.
In Minnesota, J.J. McCarthy is working through an ankle injury that has kept him on the sideline for both of Week 3 and Week 4. The sophomore is ramping up his practice workload in Week 5. The Eagles game in Week 7 appears to be the aiming point.
In the meantime, Carson Wentz is the ongoing QB1. His debut game as a Viking went as well as possible, leading his team over the Bengals by an eye-popping score of 48-10.
Things devolved somewhat in Week 4. The play wasn’t as tidy from Wentz.
The veteran QB2 got hit a ton when taking on the Steelers. He went 30/46 — a 65.2% completion rate — for 350 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. There was a fumble in there, as well. Mr. Wentz is going to look to keep the completion percentage and passing yards high while eliminating the mistakes. Most importantly, the turnovers.
Dillon Gabriel will be looking to limit his mistakes against one of the NFL’s most creative, difficult-to-decode defenses. Sounds cruel, perhaps, but Brian Flores will be looking to make the day very challenging for the rookie. A hearty helping of “welcome to the NFL” moments for Gabriel will mean that Minnesota finds itself in a good spot to climb to 3-2.
Kickoff for the Vikings at Browns game gets started at 8:30 am on Sunday, October 5th.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this piece.
