Browns Reportedly Open to Trading Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel for Right Price

The Cleveland Browns are 3-1 for the first time since 2001 with Deshaun Watson as the team's starting quarterback following Thursday night's 27-24 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers , making the possibility of a trade involving Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel more realistic.

According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler , the Browns "would probably welcome a deal at the right price" for one of their backup quarterbacks, given Watson's early-season play.

"I could see if they get the right offer for whoever it is, I think Taylen Green they'd like to keep as a developmental, so it would probably have to be Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel," Fowler said Thursday. "I am not saying they're definitely trading, I am saying they have the flexibility. This is very much a value-based team. The Browns are that more than any other."

The NFL's trade deadline is Tuesday, Nov. 10, which follows Week 9 of the regular season. That gives the Browns more than enough time to gauge interest while knowing where they stand in the postseason picture.

Keeping four quarterbacks on the roster — Watson, Sanders, Gabriel and Green — seems counter-productive if one of the guys behind the starter has trade value. Most NFL teams only keep two quarterbacks on their active 53-man roster, and Green was inactive for the fourth straight week on Thursday.

Determining the market for Sanders or Gabriel — who's been on injured reserve with a back situation and is now eligible to return — is somewhat unknown, however, according to Fowler.

"If there's another major injury somewhere and a team had a good file on Shedeur, like if they did a lot of homework on him and really liked him in the draft process," Fowler said Thursday. "But that was a hit or miss proposition because he didn't have a good pre-draft process. There just weren't a lot of teams that were absolutely in love with him. That's why he was there in the fifth round.

"Does someone take a shot on him? Maybe. I think it would have to be a situation where they would be comfortable with Gabriel as the (No. 2). If that's solidified with him, maybe they would shop Shedeur."

What future holds for Sanders

The former fifth-round pick battled with Watson throughout camp and the preseason before first-year coach Todd Monken ultimately went with the veteran .

Sanders, who's in the second year of his rookie deal , played one snap during the Browns' 21-18 win over the Carolina Panthers last week. In eight games last season as a first-year player, Sanders completed 120-of-212 pass attempts for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions.

Sanders has reportedly embraced his role as Watson's backup this season after a long meeting with Monken prior to the opener.

Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot reported last week, amid rampant speculation at the position following early-season injuries for several franchises , the Browns "plan to hang onto their young developmental quarterbacks" through the deadline next month.

Gabriel was placed on IR three days after throwing for 186 yards and three touchdowns in the Browns' preseason finale against the New England Patriots. A third-round pick in 2025, Gabriel appeared in 10 games with six starts as a rookie.

Since Gabriel is eligible to return for the Browns following Thursday's win, the team will have to decide where he fits on the 53-man roster moving forward, especially if Monken deems Sanders as Cleveland's steady No. 2.

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_Originally reported by [CBS Sports](https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/nfl-trades-browns-could-welcome-deal-shedeur-sanders-dillon-gabriel/)._