Preseason football is largely meaningless these days. Between the camps, inter-squad practices, advancements in film, and studying said film, preseason football really doesn't factor as much into the decision-making of a roster as it used to. Once upon a time, a few guys every year would make their respective teams because of preseason football. These days, they're glorified practices that rarely see the best players play.
These games are all about finding out which backup's backup is going to make the squad. Sometimes, though, on the rarest of occasions, players can still make an impact on their careers in these games. Two young men in Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel, had the chance to do just that over the last two weeks.
One didn't really make an impact; the other actively hurt his chances. Sanders looked fine against the Carolina Panthers. He missed some passes, and he was far from the most accurate he should've been playing against second, third and fourth-string defenders. Yet, he did throw two touchdowns and that still counts.
Gabriel took the reins against the Philadelphia Eagles and had the chance to silence the critics who feel Sanders is the better prospect. After all, despite being picked in the fifth round, Sanders was once the most vaunted quarterback talent in this draft. Instead, the Browns favored Gabriel over Sanders, and fans were upset over that decision.
So when the Browns did take Sanders, many thought Gabriel would be cut come training camp. Some believed that Gabriel would rise to the challenge, and when he finally got the start against the Eagles, he actively did not do that. The Browns' rookie quarterback looked good, at times, going 13-18 for an impressive 143 yards (beset this preseason so far for Browns QBs). If that were his final stat line, then great.
It's not. Instead, Gabriel threw an interception, something Sanders didn't do. Nor did Tyler Huntley, the Browns' other quarterback who play over the last two weeks.
That wouldn't be bad enough, but Gabriel also fumbled, and the Eagles were able to recover said fumble. Normally, one of the other wouldn't be the biggest deal for a rookie, but both turnovers in the same game? It's harder to look past that.
It's even harder to look past that, knowing how close the quarterback battle actually is. Gabriel had a chance to silence doubters with his outing against the Eagles, but instead, he fumbled the opportunity to take a lead in his in-camp competition.