PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – The experience for the Browns is on the defensive side, but as Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin looked at Cleveland’s offense, he pointed out three rookies making an impact.
It starts, but is not limited to, the quarterback. Dillon Gabriel threw for 18,722 yards in six seasons between Central Florida, Oklahoma and Oregon with 155 touchdowns to 32 interceptions. He’s old enough that he played in a game at Acrisure Stadium where the Panthers won on the ‘Pitt Special’ pass from Aaron Mathews to Kenny Pickett. Tre Tipton played in that game and he’s 29-years-old, just to give you an idea of how long Gabriel has been around.
“This guy is a unique rookie,” Tomlin said Tuesday. “This guy is a year older than Nick Herbig to put perspective on it. I think that in-helmet perspective you can’t put a price tag on. He is a rookie new to the National Football League, but this guy has thrown the football around a lot.”
“He’s older and more experienced than most rookies. I think timely processing is his superpower. I think his experience and superpower has been on display.”
The 25-year-old made his first start against the Vikings on Sunday going 19-33 for 190 yards with a pair of touchdowns and no interceptions. He had the Browns 25 seconds from an upset win.
Tomlin said Gabriel is fluid and minimizes negativity and mistakes. He’s also working in an offense that focuses on the run which leads to the next rookie, Quinshon Judkins.
The second-round pick from Ohio State had his first 100-yard game, 110 yards against Minnesota, but has 347 yards rushing (9th in the NFL) in four games with a pair of touchdowns and averaging 4.8 yards per attempt. Tomlin pointed out what makes this more impressive is that he’s doing this with no training camp, as he missed due to a domestic violence charge which was ultimately dismissed.
“He’s a tough runner,” Tomlin said. “He is good inside. He’s got good patience at picking vision on interior running. He finishes off his runs with violence. He is underrated in terms of his ability to bounce it to the perimeter and pop long ones.”
“I’ve seen this guy a lot, obviously we got a couple of his teammates from O-State, so I’ve seen a lot of his video. He is a complete back.”
“He’s the type of guy that can wear a defensive unit down. He fits the mold as an awesome replacement for Nick Chubb.”
Cleveland’s leading receiver is a rookie as well, tight end Harold Fannin, Junior with 21 receptions for 173 yards and a touchdown. Although Tomlin doesn’t think tight end says enough about him.
“He is an oversized athlete,” Tomlin said. “I think you box him in when you view him as a tight end. There’s been some of those athletes in recent years, Brock Bowers reflects that in Vegas. He is probably the prototype for the young guys in that mold.”
“I think that’s one of the reasons we were excited about acquiring Jonnu (Smith), because I think he fits into that category. Those guys are unique athletes that have really good run after and athleticism. They are matchup problems for linebackers and oftentimes too big and strong for secondary people.”
Tomlin said he watched a lot of Fannin’s highlights at Bowling Green last year leading up to the draft and said he only lasted until the third round because he played in the Mid-American Conference.
Is it the coach pumping up an opponent? Or a Browns team with legit young talent in what Tomlin said will be ‘an action packed game’ Sunday at Acrisure Stadium.