People often expect growth to be a linear process in sports, but often times it's just not. 

Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel said just that on Wednesday during his weekly press conference with the media. The rookie's first five NFL starts have been a bit of a roller coaster ride with some promising ups, and cringe inducing downs. 

The inconsistencies have been glaring, as concerns have been raised about Gabriel's ability to see the field and go through progressions.  As offensive coordinator Tommy Rees explained on Thursday, that's an area where Gabriel has thrived since being drafted back in April. 

"We always grade that part of him. And he grades out pretty high," said Rees. "Look, nobody's going to bat a thousand. There's, you know, certainly I don't bat a thousand calling it. Nobody's going to bat a thousand in really anything they do. But I would say he grades out where we want him." 

The fact that Gabriel spent six years in college, playing for three different teams was something the Browns valued immensely when they chose to draft him in the third round of this year's draft. That wealth of experience has seemingly helped him be more mentally prepared for the NFL than most rookies. 

"Dillon's prep and where he is mentally for a rookie is really well beyond," Rees added. "You know, he's mature that way. And then we want to make sure that you know those things that are happening during the week, we go and execute them on Sundays."

One area where Gabriel has seemed to thrive is outside the pocket. That was something Rees emphasized in his first game calling plays by scheming up an increased rate of rollout plays for the Oregon product. That strategy seemed to produce better results at times. 

"Skill set, you know, those give plays to get outside the pocket, you know, allows us to get on the move, allows the line to block a little bit differently. There's a lot of benefits to those. And, you know, we're always looking at ways to maximize our player skill set." 

The most vocal Gabriel critics point to his 5'11 height as a reason he has so much success on rolling out of the pocket, citing an inability to see over the offensive line. 

Rees pushed back on that notion. And actually used anther current NFL quarterbacks own words to make his case. 

"[49ers QB] Brock Purdy has this quote," Rees began. "He was on a podcast in the summer. I can't remember who was with. It was a former quarterback. And he talks about like 60% of the passes. You don't see it. You know, and other tall quarterbacks have said the same thing. Right. You're playing with big men out there and windows close fast. And he said you have to trust the look you're seeing. You have to anticipate. You're really throwing to spots versus different coverages, and that takes time."

The Browns are trying to give Gabriel just that. Time. It's exactly why, amidst plenty of outside noise urging the team to pivot at quarterback to fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders, head coach Kevin Stefanski is sticking with Gabriel. 

It's up to Rees to make the most of Gabriel's time under center, by accentuating his strengths.