The Cleveland Browns turned to rookie Dillon Gabriel in Week 5 in an attempt to jumpstart an anemic offense. And while the third-round pick threw a pair of touchdowns and took care of the ball in a performance that Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said was filled with a "lot of positives," similar issues surfaced for Cleveland's offense in a 21-17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, as the unit failed to eclipse 17 points for the 10th straight game, dating to last season.
"Obviously can always be better and certainly we as an offense have to be better and score more to help this football team," Stefanski said Monday. "But for a young player in that environment versus that defense, to take care of the ball, make the plays he made, I thought was a lot of positives with plenty to clean up. And that's what he will do, and that's the mentality he has is certainly to be a player that continues to get better week in and week out."
Sunday's game marked the first all season that the Browns didn't turn the ball over, which had plagued Cleveland in its first four starts under Joe Flacco. The 40-year-old veteran's eight turnovers were the most in the NFL before he was benched.
With Gabriel making his first career start, the Browns opted for a more conservative approach that played to the rookie's skill set as a quick processor and kept the ball out of harm's way.
Gabriel got the ball out quickly and played within structure. His 2.54-second average time to throw was quicker than Flacco's 2.85-second average time to throw and helped keep the offense on schedule, along with a running game that accumulated a season-high 140 yards.
But as a result, Gabriel didn't push the ball downfield much, and he didn't have great success when doing so. Gabriel averaged 5.5 air yards per attempt, a tick lower than the 6.7 air yards per attempt that Flacco averaged in his four starts. Gabriel was also 3 of 10 on passes that traveled at least 10 air yards.
Through five games, the Browns have generated only 10 pass plays of at least 20 yards, tied for 10th fewest in the league.
"It's always a product of the game you're in, I would tell you," Stefanski said. "We have a lot of faith in Dillon and our pass receivers, whether that's from the wide receivers, tight ends, running backs, you name it. We have a lot of confidence in our guys, so it's just very dependent on the team you're facing and what they're doing in the back end."
Gabriel struggled late as the offense stalled in the final quarter. He was pinpoint in the first half of Sunday's game, as the Browns built a 10-7 lead, their first halftime lead since Week 12 of the 2024 season against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Through two quarters, Gabriel completed 13 of 21 passes, and he was off target on only four of his attempts, according to ESPN Research. That accuracy waned in the second half, as Gabriel completed 6 of 12 passes and was off target on 45% of his passes.
absolute dot from Dillon!#MINvsCLE on NFL Network and NFL+ pic.twitter.com/izTOI0zoaS
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) October 5, 2025
The Vikings also stacked the box to stop Cleveland's running game and the Browns, who held a 17-14 lead entering the fourth quarter, failed to pick up a first down on their first four possessions of the final quarter.
"Being smart in certain situations, throwing the ball away," Gabriel said of his off-target passes. "I think maybe a throw like that may look like a miscommunication, but also on the same side, being smart, understanding the situation that we are in. What's more important, trying to fit something in there or getting to play another play?"
After an unorthodox week that saw Gabriel travel overseas and become the first quarterback to make his first start in an International game, the upcoming week could give Gabriel a bit more continuity and time to get comfortable ahead of Sunday's road game against the Steelers (1 p.m. ET, CBS). As far as growing the offense around Gabriel, Stefanski said it would be game-plan dependent but praised his work in his first week as the starter.
"Obviously, the week last week was unique," Stefanski said. "I thought that Dillon and the guys handled that fine, I don't think that had anything to do with the plan and those types of things. They were very prepared. But I think it's very specific to your opponent is probably the biggest thing."