London Calling: Dillon Gabriel’s Dawn Debut Shows Promise for the Browns
October 6, 2025
Dillon Gabriel was named the Cleveland Browns starter heading into their week 5 tilt against the Minnesota Vikings in the second international NFL game. Stefanski and company decided to turn to their rookie third round signal caller just a few days after Joe Flacco had a less than impressive day in Detroit against the Lions.
First and foremost, a 9:30 AM ET London kick off means that Gabriel’s family was watching him debut around 5 AM in their home state of Hawaii. Another fun fact is that Gabriel is the first quarterback in NFL history to have their first start take place in an international matchup. All things considered, Gabriel performed very well. While he attempted 33 passes (completing 19 of them for 190 yards and 2 touchdowns), the Browns also relied heavily on their running game. Quinshon Judkins continued to work himself out of the Dawg house (pun intended) with a 100 yard day on the ground.
A cool moment occurred during their opening possession after their defense had forced a fumble from the Vikings offense. Gabriel lined up with Judkins behind him, faked the hand off and threw it into the endzone to their other rookie Harold Fannin. It was a trio of rookies involved in Dillon’s first career touchdown pass and provided a glimpse into what this offense could be down the road.
Gabriel did what you would want him to do. He checked the ball down, relied on his running game, didn’t force too much and most importantly, didn’t turn the ball over. This was nearly enough to notch him his first career victory but Carson Wentz engineered a go ahead drive with 25 seconds remaining in the game.
Browns fans who aren’t eagerly awaiting the debut of Shedeur Sanders have to like what they saw and Gabriel seemingly accomplished enough to earn a second start. We’ll see what week 6 holds as the Dolphins come to town. He hopefully won’t be on a tight leash and will be given the opportunity to develop, good or bad, over the next several weeks.
Keith, Author
Keith runs youth flag football leagues by day, and by night he hosts the podcast and writes articles with the confidence of a man who’s been rushing quarterbacks since dial-up. A longtime flag football DE and lifelong Falcons fan, he’s no stranger to heartbreak and enjoys watching the bears get slaughtered each week. Equal parts coach, critic, and chaos, Keith calls it like he sees it… even if it hurts.
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