5 Cleveland Browns Position Battles That Will Wrap up During Preseason Finale

The depth on the Browns will have plenty of playing time and the bubble-players look to make the 53-man roster.

Jul 30, 2026; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Dillon Gabriel (6) and quarterback Taylen Green (15) throw passes during training camp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The final preseason game arrives and is as welcomed as sitting through endless streaming ads before the movie starts. The Cleveland Browns announced that they will not play any starters versus the New England Patriots on Thursday night.

Third-string quarterback Dillon Gabriel will start the first half for the Browns.

So what can be gained by this game? The Browns depth is thin and Thursday’s night preseason finale will conclude several position battles. 

Quarterback

Gabriel has been the third-string quarterback all preseason and has not played well. Rookie Taylen Green has not seen the field in the preseason. Green is big and athletic, the opposite of Gabriel.

Todd Monken did not draft Gabriel, but he did draft Green. If Green can show good film tonight, then he may push Gabriel for the third-string quarterback. Monken said of the quarterbacks “I’m just excited to see them play, because again, they don’t get nearly as many reps in practice so their opportunity to get out there and play will weigh heavily in where we look at the roster moving forward.”

Wide Receiver

The wide receiver room is almost set. Taylan Wallace will probably be the fifth receiver due to his familiarity with Monken and his special teams prowess. The Browns have several options for the last receiver position. Malachi Corley has done a nice job in the first two preseason games returning kickoffs. If the Browns are confident in his returning ability and he can make a couple plays in the final game, then he will be the last receiver on the roster. 

The position battle got smaller as the Browns have cut former third-round pick Cedric Tillman. Gage Larvadain leads the team in receptions with six in the first two preseason games. His play style is similar to KC Concepcion. Undrafted free agent Luke Floriea leads the team in receiving yards and has made some big plays with Shedeur Sanders. If one of these players can have a break-out game then they may be able to leap frog the others and make the final roster. 

Tight End

The back-up tight end is an important position battle as they will have the most playing time of these battles. Blake Whiteheart and rookie Carsen Ryan have had similar stats with receptions and yards in the first two preseason games (which have not been a lot). Gabriel tends to throw to the tight end and one of these players can stand out in this game and prove he can back up Harold Fannin Jr. 

Running Back

Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson will receive most of the carries this season. However, running backs get injured often and the third-string running back could see the field. Both Raheim (Rocket) Sanders and Ahmani Marshall have both received 14 carries in the preseason. Marshall has struggled mightily getting separation and gaining yards. He will get a lot of carries in the preseason finale and if he can make more plays than Sanders, then the Browns may have to reconsider the depth chart. 

Defensive Back

The defensive backfield needs to be flying against the Patriots. Michael Coats Jr. was on his way to winning the third outside cornerback position, but got hurt earlier this week in practice. The rest of the Browns cornerbacks have struggled this preseason by giving up big plays and penalties. Coats Jr. stood out by bringing his speed and physicality to each play. Other Browns’ cornerbacks need to emulate that play style to stand out to replace Coats Jr. on the roster. 

Although they might not make the headlines, Thursday night’s game can define the players’ battling for roster spots.