The Opening Drive 11/17: Shedeur Sanders' Performance Requires Perspective
In a race to define players we have to step back and see the nuance in the performance.
Yesterday’s loss in Cleveland had about as much drama as a Browns fan could hope for in an NFL game. The defense made the afternoon brutal for division rival Lamar Jackson, and the offense saw the debut of Shedeur Sanders — something many had been begging for since early in the season when the team moved off Joe Flacco. While it wasn’t the desired outcome, we finally got real reps from Sanders in a live NFL setting, and it went about how you would expect.
There was a clear lack of cohesion and comfort for the rookie and his teammates, as Sanders has yet to receive reps with the first team despite being the backup on game days. Wyatt Teller spoke about what that looks like when trying to adjust on the fly: “I think I have heard his cadence, like, two or three times. I think going out of halftime, we all got on the line, and he said his cadence and we kind of got through it. Again, a lot of learning, but he played his heart off, put his heart out. We just fell short.”
There’s room here to both recognize the difficulties Sanders faced coming into the second half of yesterday’s game and acknowledge the elements that likely kept him off the field in the first place. We’ll try to do that here, knowing it will probably just confirm the priors of those who read it. There’s nuance in the quarterback position — especially in the debut of a player entering the second half of a game he didn’t prepare to start against a very talented defense. Let’s dig into that nuance.
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The issues for Sanders have primarily revolved around tempo and decision-making. Too often he drifts vertical at the top of the pocket and this leads to his eyes lingering too long on a specific read. The answer can be in front of his face but he will fail to identify it and get where it needs to go.
There’s plenty more nuance to dig into on his full film room, but those traits that restrict his ability to be trusted to keep an offense on schedule showed up Sunday afternoon. Every late round rookie has issues that need resolved but you can see why the drift issues are something the league has been aware of and the Ravens tried to exploit as often as they could.
There were also throws that made that show why he had high draft upside. His 25-yard dig throw to Harold Fannin Jr. to start the final drive was a display of poise and patience that the Browns offense needs when the offense can provide it. He let the scheme unfold and delivered a strike to Fannin for a chunk play.
He certainly missed some reads on both checkdowns and timing throws, but again, that should be expected at this point. This was his first set of live reps against a real NFL defense. This game has a chance to be a launch point for Sanders in one way or the other and he seems committed to learning the lessons from the opportunity and he continues to show maturity off the field.
It’s more than likely neither Gabriel or Sanders ends up solving the Browns long-term quarterback issues but giving them both a fair shake this year feels necessary given the investment. Sanders had a large set of circumstances in front of him in this game and his overall poor performance is not to be unexpected.
However, much like I have noted about Gabriel’s time with the role, this is never going to be fair. Getting real opportunities as a mid or late round quarterback rarely have the circumstances in your favor. You have to grab the opportunity and never let it go. Fully understanding the leash for your performance will be shorter than a quarterback selected in the first or even early second round. It’s their job to stop the team from wanting to select another quarterback at the top of the 2026 NFL Draft and right now neither has done that.
We will see if Sanders is able to get the full runway to show the full extent of who he can be. We saw those glimpses last night, but we also saw where the concerns have been with his performance since arriving in Berea. Where it goes from here I do not know, but count me as one of those who are very interested in the subplot the rest of the way.
Browns Film Breakdown will return later today with your Saturday Prospect Spotlight.
We all remember when Baker used to drift out of the back of the pocket and to his right when he first arrived in CLE right ?
At least Sanders has the physical ability to be an NFL starter if he can fix his weaknesses.....that's a REALLY BIG IF. But Gabriel's issues can't be fixed. So give Sanders a shot and at best we have hope at QB going forward. At worst we are in same spot we are now. Go Browns!
As much as people hate Dylan his about rating and Td and interception rate are just as good as Cam Ward. Shedure needs 5 seconds to throw the ball, that’s not going to work in the NFL.