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Rob Gronkowski

For a team that won just three games last season and has started this one at 1-3, the Cleveland Browns sure do generate a lot of attention, and now a New England Patriots legend who won two Super Bowls with that franchise’s dynasty has offered his own take on the Browns — and it is one that is sure to be as polarizing as the Cleveland quarterback competition itself.

The Browns’ fluctuating quarterback situation remains the center of controversy, and has only grown more intense since Cleveland used its fifth-round pick, No. 144 overall, to select the most divisive player in the draft, but one who was also among the most talented, at least based on his college performance — former Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders.

The son of NFL Hall of Famer Deion Sanders completed 74 percent of his passes in his final year at Colorado, best of any quarterback in the 2025 draft class, while holding his interception rate to a mere 1.74 percent.

But when Browns coach Kevin Stefanaski — who has led Cleveland to the playoffs in two of his five full seasons — benched 40-year-old, 18-year veteran quarterback Joe Flacco in favor of the team’s other rookie quarterback, Gronkowski offered his take on what should have happened, in his opinion.

Gronk Differs With Browns Coach

With 24-year-old Dillon Gabriel, the Browns’ third-round draft pick out of Oregon, named the starting quarterback for Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings in London, England, Stefanski has retained Flacco as the backup with Sanders remaining inactive.

But that’s not what Gronkowski would have done.

“Shadeur Sanders, I think should be the number two now, now if you benched Joe Flacco already this early in the season? It’s not a situation that NFL fans wanna see,” Gronkowski said, speaking on a podcast hosted by former NFL Network commentator Kay Adams. “Shadeur Sanders has a lot of fans out there. He’s polarizing. I mean, this guy’s electric. People want to see him succeed.”

Flacco Should be Traded, Former Tight End Says

Gronkowski was careful to point out that, in his view, Gabriel has earned the No. 1 quarterback’s job, but Flacco according to the future Hall of Fame tight end no longer has a place on the Browns’s team.

Joe Flacco already proved that he’s not truly the fit this year for the Cleveland Browns,” Gronkowski continued. “I think, like I said, Joe Flacco should get traded.”

Sanders himslef had a bizarre response to the moves by Stefanski that see him remain on the sidelines.

“Reporters asked Sanders what he thinks he needs to show coaches to prove his readiness, and what he and Gabriel learned from Flacco as rookies,” Jayna Bardahl of The Athletic reported. “Sanders smiled and silently mouthed his answers, even as some asked if he had anything to say out loud.”

Gabriel Takes Promotion in Stride

As for Gabriel, a native of Hawaii, he appeared to take the news, including the news that his first NFL start would come in London, in stride, and even with a sense of humor.

“Fun fact — need to get my dad a passport,” the quarterback, who also played the position at Oklahoma and Central Florida, said while noting that for his parents in Hawaii, his debut game as a starter will kick off at 3:30 a.m. on Sunday.

“I’ve always been used to it, when I was in Florida to Hawaii, a 6-hour difference. Texting family is a little different,” he said, as quoted Friday by The Associated Press, adding that even with the long flight to London “there’s comfort there,” because he routinely made long flights from Hawaii.