It’s Week 5 of the 2025 NFL season and there’s no shortage of news to dissect. The Cleveland Browns have officially turned to Dillon Gabriel – at least for one week – and that means their quarterback room gets shuffled right? Or maybe not. Gabriel being moved to the starting role might not have a direct correlation to Shedeur Sanders and if he’s any closer to making his NFL debut.
As for the Tennessee Titans, well they’re in a whole heap of trouble. While they have their franchise quarterback, just about every other position on the field has some assistance. Brian Callahan avoided the hot seat a year ago, will he be able to avoid it again with another miserable season? Speaking of quarterbacks, Anthony Richardson.
The Indianapolis Colts are in a position they probably never imagined, which was turning to Daniel Jones over Richardson and Jones actually playing well. It makes them have to decide how they want to handle Richardson over the next few weeks. Is he trade bait or a safety blanket if things fall apart with Jones?
Here’s rumors circulating around the NFL world as the season is a month in. There’s not a whole lot going on, but there’s certainly a whole lot to talk about.
Shedeur Sanders still at the bottom of the Browns depth chart is as problematic as it sounds
Kevin Stefanski won’t face too much pressure to play Shedeur Sanders just yet, unless things fall completely off the rails while Gabriel is the new starter. Sanders is still the third string quarterback in Cleveland and that really shouldn’t be a surprise. The Browns have made it clear they want to be patient with Sanders and thrusting him into being Gabriel’s backup isn’t exactly smart.
While Joe Flacco is playing terribly to start the year, he’s still the better option under center in an emergency situation. Who knows, maybe Flacco ends up starting again this year if Gabriel looks awful. Either way, the Browns aren’t going to force Sanders into any type of situation this year if they don’t have to.
Right now, they have Gabriel, who is showing a lot more potential than originally perceived and Flacco if need be. Remember, this offense is not set up for an inexperienced rookie to thrive in. This offensive line is the worst in the NFL and the weapons are nonexistent – and the ones that are there couldn’t catch the ball if they wanted to.
As long as Sanders is on the team, he’s going to be an emergency option at best, but a developmental piece the Browns are going to ease into the offense. Rushing Sanders now when the season is already in disarray solves nothing. At least if they preserve Sanders’ potential for one year, it gives them some optimism heading into 2026 with two first-round picks.
Brian Callahan can’t avoid hot seat as Tennessee Titans season is on the verge of collapse
For what it’s worth, the Tennessee Titans were expected to have another top five pick again in the 2026 NFL Draft. They don’t have a team that’s good enough to contend for anything right now. That’s not to say they can’t get there, but right now, they’re not good. While a lot of that will fall on the roster construction, Brian Callahan won’t be able to avoid the hot seat if this season continues to unravel.
Cam Ward has looked decent in his first four games, considering this team is terrible and he somehow has worse receiving options than the Cleveland Browns. Callahan should have gotten on the hot seat after last season, but with it being his first season, I guess the Titans brass gave him a pass.
He won’t have that same luxury this season as the Titans need to at least show promise and potential to become a contender in the AFC South. According to Bleacher Report, there’s a possibility that if things don’t change by the bye week in Week 10, a change could be made. I wouldn’t be surprised if that happens either.
I said a lot last season that Callahan, his staff and the general manager should all be on the hot seat. While that team wasn’t good, they could have easily been better than they were. While first year coaches usually get a pass, look at what happened to Jerod Mayo. If the right coaching candidates pop up, why not start fresh? The Titans could have done that, especially knowing they were going to go quarterback with the No. 1 pick.
The Titans aren’t going to let Callahan and his staff ruin Ward before he even touches his potential. He has just over 600 passing yards with two touchdown passes and two interceptions. This offense is the worst in the NFL and their defense is basically the worst as well. It’s the coaches job to fix that and if they can’t, well they don’t deserve to be on the sidelines this season.
Anthony Richardson on the move? The Colts could pull the plug on former first round pick
The Indianapolis Colts once said they weren’t shopping Anthony Richardson. They also didn’t think Daniel Jones was going to look the way he has through the first four games of the season. Does that change how they handle the trade deadline? Possibly. But I wouldn’t be surprised one way or another.
It would make sense for the Colts to retain Richardson for at least another year because he’s technically the only quarterback between the two that’s guaranteed at least one more season on their contract. Jones was signed on a one-year deal and the way he’s playing, he’s setting himself up for a Sam Darnold sized extension.
The Colts may not want to extend him and instead hope Richardson learned the mental side of the game by spending the season watching Jones. Richardson said he’s open to the idea of being traded and specifically wanted to play with a “premier playcaller”. There’s three coaches who fit that description: Kyle Shanahan, Kevin O’Connell and Sean McVay.
Carson Wentz is showing the task J.J. McCarthy has at hand and O’Connell may be interested in bringing in some competition if McCarthy continues to struggle. The 49ers and Shanahan might be interested in Richardson because Brock Purdy is always hurt and has a simplified system. The best thing for Richardson is getting into a simple system that doesn’t require him to do a lot.
The most intriguing landing spot would be the Los Angeles Rams with Sean McVay. Not only would McVay find a way to get the most out of Richardson, but with Matthew Stafford’s pending retirement, I wouldn’t be surprised to see McVay turn to Richardson as Stafford’s incumbent. Richardson could use the rest of this season and next to learn from a Super Bowl winning quarterback.
Imagine what Richardson could turn into under McVay. The good thing about this too is the Rams would be able to buy low as Richardson isn’t going to yield a typical return for a former fourth overall pick. Trey Lance only cost the Dallas Cowboys a fourth-round pick; you have to imagine Richardson’s value is somewhere around there.
The Colts have shown over the last two seasons that they really aren’t committed to Richardson. The best thing they could do is just trade him while they can get something for him. Especially if they don’t plan on re-signing him after his rookie deal is up. Indianapolis has a lot to think about and trading Richardson has to be atop their list.
There’s no shortage of teams waiting for a quarterback like Richardson. Wherever he goes, it will have to be with a team that will be patient with him and like he said, a good enough offensive mind to both develop him, while not putting too much pressure on him.