The Browns are turning to their other rookie quarterback this week with Shedeur Sanders unlikely to play due to injury.
Third-round pick Dillon Gabriel is expected to start Saturday’s preseason road game against the Eagles after Sanders suffered an oblique injury during Wednesday’s joint practice between the teams earlier this week, the team announced Saturday.
While Sanders is not expected to play, per the team, he was in uniform before the game, as seen in a photo posted by Browns play-by-play broadcaster Andrew Siciliano.
Sanders, who infamously slid to the fifth round in the draft after initially being projected as a top-five selection, enjoyed a strong debut in Cleveland’s preseason opener.
He completed 14 of 23 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-10 victory over the Panthers.
“If it’s a right guard, you can play through that,” Cleveland coach Kevin Stefanski said of the injury. “When it’s a quarterback, you kind of need that muscle to throw.
“So unfortunately, it’s going to put him down for a little bit here. We’ll treat it day to day and see how he responds. But we wanted to be smart because he’s a thrower, so you can’t push that thing.”
Gabriel, the team’s third-round pick out of Oregon, missed the Carolina game due to a hamstring opener before returning to practice this week.
Fourth-year quarterback Kenny Pickett also has been sidelined in training camp with a hamstring injury.
Veteran Joe Flacco is healthy, according to Stefanski, but he also will not play Saturday for a second consecutive week.
The Brown’s quarterback battle is one of the league’s top preseason storylines leading into Cleveland’s Week 1 home battle with the Bengals.
While most teams would not keep four quarterbacks, it’s possible the Browns will do so.