The Cleveland Browns had one of the weirdest drafts out there. Yes, they are the team that finally stopped Shedeur Sanders’ slide in the fifth round… after they took a worse quarterback in round three. Cleveland also traded out of pick two, eschewing a potential franchise-altering player in Travis Hunter, and instead took a run-stuffing defensive tackle. The Mistake by the Lake then took Carson Schewsinger at pick 33, before using five-straight picks on fantasy football-relevant positions, including two quarterbacks, two running backs, and a tight end. Reminder, their best offensive weapon is David Njoku. It’s unclear what their plan is on offense, but they now have plenty of weapons. Let’s dive into the outlooks for their 2025 fantasy football-eligible players!
| Rd | Pick | Player | Pos | College |
| 1 | 5 | Mason Graham | DT | Michigan |
| 2 | 33 | Carson Schwesinger | LB | UCLA |
| 2 | 36 | Quinshon Judkins | RB | Ohio State |
| 3 | 67 | Harold Fannin | TE | Bowling Green |
| 3 | 94 | Dillon Gabriel | QB | Oregon |
| 4 | 126 | Dylan Sampson | RB | Tennessee |
| 5 | 144 | Shedeur Sanders | QB | Colorado |
We’re going to do this a little differently than most of our breakdowns, as we’ll divide them by position groups rather than draft order. The players will intersect and play off of each other in significant ways, so this makes the most sense. If you disagree, start your fantasy site and do it your way!
QUARTERBACKS
Round 3, Pick 94: Dillon Gabriel, Quarterback, Oregon (5’11”, 205 lbs)
TALENT:
The number one thing you will see when you read draft profiles of Dillon Gabriel is his prolific passing numbers in college. Those draft profiles are lying to you. Dillon Gabriel was mostly a screen, checkdown, and slant merchant at Oregon. Granted, he usually got to those after running through his progressions, but he mostly just got the ball to his weapons and let them do the hard part. He has great tight window accuracy, allowing him to make the correct decision work in his favor. He’s also great at making his way through his reads and is mobile enough to make it work. He’s elusive in the pocket, but he generally doesn’t want to run.
While Gabriel was a good passer at Oregon, he’s small (5’11”, 205 lbs) and old (he will be 25 once the season starts). So, a lot of what he put on tape makes me scratch my head because he was a man throwing against children by the time he got out of college. For reference, he’s exactly one year younger than Brock Purdy and is nearly a full year older than C.J. Stroud. So, that gives you an idea of how old this man is. Brock Purdy is already up for a new contract, and C.J. Stroud is entering his third year.
Gabriel will make it as a fully competent backup quarterback in the NFL. He won’t wow you with anything he does, mainly because his pop-gun arm, while accurate, doesn’t produce NFL-level throws outside the numbers. While Gabriel throws well under pressure, pressure gets to him sooner than many NFL players. He could develop to be a decent backup quarterback in this league for a while, but he doesn’t have starter upside at all. He’s a very middling floor, low-ceiling prospect who will provide roster depth.
NFL Comparison: John Wolford
Pre-Draft Grade: UDFA
Round 5, Pick 144: Shedeur Sanders, Quarterback, Colorado (6’1″, 212 lbs)
TALENT:
Watching Shedeur Sanders is a mind-numbingly frustrating exercise. He is exceptionally athletic and uses his athleticism to make some of the most astounding efforts to move the pocket, escape sacks, and find the right angles on throws. Unfortunately, things quickly spiral out of control from there. While he has a gorgeous, quick release on short and intermediate throws, they don’t always put the receiver in a position to win after the catch. He also struggles with deep ball accuracy, constantly missing receivers downfield, likely because his mechanics are inconsistent. Sanders is also a good, not great, runner. He has good long speed but isn’t crafty in the open field. He also rarely moves outside the pocket intending to run, and as such, he’s more in the Brock Purdy or Joe Burrow rushing mold than the Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen build.
The top trait that could be a boon or a boondoggle for Sanders in the NFL is his extreme patience. He gives his reads ample time to come open, but his internal clock also struggles to throw the ball, which makes his pocket mobility go from being a bonus to being a necessity as the pass rush gets home.
That patience could turn into indecisiveness in the NFL, especially if he’s thrown right into the fire with a team that has a poor offensive line (which doesn’t seem to be the case with his landing spot). We’re talking about David Carr and Caleb Williams’ levels of getting your stuff rocked in the pocket. His patience also requires the receiver to break before getting the ball thrown his way, which means that the passes that got home in college will be interceptions in the NFL.
Sanders isn’t a finished product and needs to be graded as such. While he’s great inside the pocket without any pressure, he struggles to put snaps on tape that show him in the pocket with timing, mostly because he holds onto the ball way too long. He also struggles with confidence when things break down, and he lacks any anticipation.
Sanders needs time in a quick-strike offense that gives him clear and defined reads to improve his decision-making skills. Sanders also, for the love of God, needs to get the Jimmy Garoppolo out of him: stop trying to hit plays that your arm can’t complete. He also requires the ability to sit behind a quarterback and learn from him, at least for half a season. There are a few good options for him in that mold, but he won’t make it to them, as he likely gets sniped by a team inside the top ten that needs him to play right away. Those won’t be the best fits for him, as he will get put through the ringer and come out bruised, battered, and potentially broken.
NFL Comparison: Hyper-Mobile Jimmy Garoppolo
Pre-Draft Grade: Round 3
2025 OPPORTUNITY:
Depth Chart:
QB1 Deshaun Watson (injured, out for the season)
QB2 Joe Flacco
QB3 Kenny Pickett
QB4 Dillon Gabriel
QB5 Shedeur Sanders
Man… I have no idea what the Browns are doing here, but it makes a bit more sense when you consider that Watson will likely never don a Browns jersey again, Joe Flacco was Kenny Pickett insurance, and Shedeur Sanders just… fell into their laps. The only thing that’s baffling here is Dillon Gabriel. There’s no particular reason a team should have Pickett and Gabriel on their team, as both are low-ceiling quarterbacks who likely top out around the 45th-best quarterback in the league. Shedeur is a home run threat, but given that he fell to the fifth round due to ego and a lack of coachable traits during interviews, he may never see the field.
We are likely looking at a situation where at least two quarterbacks start five games, and there’s a possibility that all four start four games, with Shedeur Sanders finishing out the season. Things are incredibly fluid right now, and it’s best to take this quarterback room as it comes.
And yes, I am avoiding #thediscourse altogether. My draft grade speaks for itself; he was never worthy of a first-round pick.
2025 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK:
I would draft Flacco late and stash Sanders as a lottery ticket in two-quarterback leagues. Gabriel offers very little, especially considering the team context of Kenny Pickett, who already exists on the roster. This is a mess, and one I want to steer clear of, unless I can hold a deep league flyer on Shedeur.
RUNNING BACKS
Round 2, Pick 36: Quinshon Judkins, Running Back, Ohio State (5’11”, 221 lbs)
TALENT:
Quinshon Judkins versus TreVeyon Henderson at Ohio State was a very Goofus vs Gallant situation. Where Henderson Jack Sparrow ran his way to long runs, Judkins was a far tighter and more proficient runner, succeeding because he was technically proficient, not just a wild and fast runner like Henderson. Judkins is quicker than fast, as he has a high rate of 10+ yard runs, and a very low rate of 20+ yard runs. He powers through would-be tacklers in the open field, but struggles at that when going through the line of scrimmage. Ohio State maximized this, as 42% of his runs went off the edge (thanks to the Underdog NFL Draft Show for both those statistics), and he would be well-suited in a scheme that maximizes his burst and his ability to finish through contact.
Judkins can make the hard yards up the middle, provided he gets the blocking to clear out some of the junk at the first level. If he can get some space, he can chunk off good runs. Unfortunately, he doesn’t do much to make the space he needs. However, his dual skill set will make him a fantasy RB2 or high-end RB3 the second he hits the league.
NFL Comparison: Joe Mixon, Classic Kareem Hunt
Pre-Draft Grade: Late 2nd Round
Round 4, Pick 126: Dylan Sampson, Running Back, Tennessee (5’8″, 200 lbs)
TALENT:
Sampson isn’t an ideal size for an NFL running back, with his 5’11”, 201-pound frame being virtually identical to last year’s rookie breakout, Bucky Irving (5’10”, 195 pounds). The similarities don’t end there. He has a ton of burst through the line of scrimmage, and he’s a demon in the open field. But he isn’t an out-of-control speed demon. Sampson runs with control and good contact balance, exhibiting patience at the line of scrimmage and allowing his plus vision to see the holes open in front of him.
Sampson is also very fast to the edge, frequently outrunning backers to get huge chunk gains, but most of his rushing came up the middle at Tennessee. His vision, burst, balance, and patience allowed him to make significant gains or turn something into something. However, he’s not without his downside, as he is inconsistent with his hands and his pass protection (despite being willing) is sometimes iffy. Despite his shaky hands, he is outstanding once he catches the ball and can gain yards after the catch (YAC) on the open field.
All told, Sampson has the same small back profile as other players I’ve liked coming out of recent drafts, but those two went in vastly different directions: Jaylen Wright (buried behind De’Von Achane) and Bucky Irving (who dominated Rachaad White into a scat back role). All in all, he’s a decent fantasy prospect who has a lot of rookie-year breakout potential.
NFL Comparison: Bucky Irving
Pre-Draft Grade: 4th Round
2025 OPPORTUNITY:
Depth Chart:
RB1 Quinshon Judkins
RB2 Jerome Ford
RB3 Dylan Sampson
RB4 Pierre Strong Jr.
Quinshon Judkins can be the bell cow for the Browns as soon as week one, and he is likely going to be one of (if not the) highest drafted rookie running backs not named Ashton Jeanty. Judkins found himself in a role where he can thrive, behind ESPN’s #1 Run Blocking Win Rate offensive line in 2023. They are a perfect fit for QJ, as the big uglies up front will clear out the riff-raff to allow him to get up to speed. He has every opportunity to succeed out of the gate, even if the quarterback handing him the ball may change every week.
Ironically, Sampson provides the biggest cap to his upside, as he could develop into a third-down back role for the Browns. Ultimately, however, Sampson is on the roster to send Jerome Ford to the nether realm. While Ford performed admirably last season, he’s best suited as a depth piece, not a feature back. That being said, I doubt that Sampson presents a considerable impediment to Judkins’ success, and the two could thrive in a shared role, just like Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson at Ohio State.
2025 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK:
Judkins is a priority draft asset in the first five rounds, and I would take him before the likes of James Conner, Najee Harris, or Jaylen Warren. You should make it a goal to get Judkins onto your roster, as he will provide immediate upside.
Sampson, however, is nothing more than a flyer. He’s one I would take toward the end of my draft, as he has Bucky Irving upside in his first year. Unfortunately, that’s a pick that you might move on from as soon as you hit a roster crunch.
TIGHT END
Round 3, Pick 67: Harold Fannin Jr., Tight End, Bowling Green (6’3”, 241 lbs)
TALENT:
Fannin is a tough gainer with good contact balance and enough wiggle with the ball to make him a reliable yards after the catch threat in the NFL. Before he gets the ball, his limited route tree and low top-end speed combine to create a player who can separate, but who doesn’t maintain the separation as defenders recover and catch up with him.
Bowling Green fed him until he threw up last season, as he was one of two tight ends in NCAA history to notch 100+ receptions in a single season (the other was Tyler Warren, in the long-ago ages of… 2024). A lot of these catches came because Bowling Green drew up a lot of designed plays for Fannin, with screens and other short-area targets. They relied on his YAC ability to get the tough yards. It worked well because of the aforementioned #YACBoi traits, but also because of his amazingly soft hands and his good adjustments to questionably thrown footballs.
He’s a bad blocker, but I don’t care. This is fantasy football. He has a chance to become something early in his career, as he has shown that he can handle a massive workload without many concerns.
NFL Comparison: Jonnu Smith
Pre-Draft Grade: 2nd Round
2025 OPPORTUNITY:
Depth Chart:
TE1 David Njoku
TE2 Harold Fannin Jr
TE3 Blake Whiteheart
TE4 Brenden Bates
TE5 Tre’ McKitty
Fannin has zero chance of getting more than 30 targets, unless David Njoku suffers an injury or the Browns fundamentally change their offense. They may do the latter, as their wide receiver room (Jerry Jeudy, Jamari Thrash, and Cedric Tillman) is one of the worst that I have ever seen.
2025 FANTASY FOOTBALL OUTLOOK:
If David Njoku suffers an injury, then Fannin enters the streaming conversation. Njoku averaged over 16 PPR points per game with Joe Flacco a couple of years ago, indicating this offense’s direction without Deshaun Watson at the helm. While I doubt that Fannin gets that far, you only need half of that to be a top-fifteen tight end most weeks.
