Shedeur Sanders endured a topsy-turvy NFL Draft weekend, waiting until the third day to hear his name called. After having his hopes crushed by a nasty prank phone call during Round 2, he went No. 144 overall to the Cleveland Browns in the fifth round. Now the tricky challenge begins.
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Shedeur has landed in Cleveland, where a few other mediocre quarterbacks are already milling around, but none of whom would be considered the odds-on favorite to become QB1. Many assume Sanders will be in contention for the starting job. However, some believe he might have a hard time even making the 53-man roster.
On FS1’s The Facility show, former NFLer and analyst James Jones suggested that the former Buffs star might end up as a practice squad player for the Browns. Jones felt that it would be a difficult situation for Shedeur because he’s always been the surefire starter from youth football until college. But that would probably not be the case in Cleveland.
“This will be the greatest accomplishment this young fella has ever accomplished if he makes this football team. He’s never been in a situation like this… He’s walking into a situation he’s never been in,” the former Super Bowl-winning wide receiver stated.
“It’s not the second string, it’s not the third, it’s the fourth-string quarterback. This will be the greatest accomplishment if he makes the team. And you know what, he’s going to have to be flawless,” added Jones.
Based on the way Jones was talking about Shedeur’s chances of making the Browns roster, you would have thought he was joining a QB room with Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, and Patrick Mahomes. Shedeur is not entering a situation where he’s competing with elite guys. You don’t have to be “flawless” to be in this lot.
Cleveland currently has five QBs on their roster. Right off the top, Deshaun Watson can be discounted. He’s not going to play for the Browns again. Next comes Kenny Pickett, a failed former first-round pick who spent last year as a backup.
Then there’s the 40-year-old veteran Joe Flacco and the two rookies — Shedeur and third-round pick Dillon Gabriel. Not exactly a murderer’s row of QB competition there.
Flacco was likely brought in as the backup or emergency QB. Cleveland is a rebuilding franchise, so there would be no point in trotting out a 40-year-old as your Week 1 starter. That leaves the real competition between Pickett, Gabriel, and Sanders.
The two rookie quarterbacks offer a very similar profile as passers. They have similar strengths and weaknesses, except for the fact that the Colorado alum is bigger, taller, has longer arms, and bigger hands.
However, the team’s investment in Gabriel indicates he could be the most likely QB on the roster. Six times, the Browns chose to draft other players instead of Sanders.
That said, coach Kevin Stefanski had stated that accuracy and decision-making were high on the team’s checklist during the draft process, “and I think that’s the strength of both of those young men [Sanders and Gabriel].”
Statistically, Gabriel boasts slightly better numbers. He played 64 games and racked up over 18,700 yards, 155 touchdowns, and 32 interceptions during his college career with the UFC, Oklahoma, and Oregon.
Sanders brought elite production as well. In 50 college games with Jackson State and Colorado, he completed over 70% of his passes, threw for 14,347 yards, 134 passing TDs, 17 rushing TDs, and just 27 picks.
Clearly, it is going to be a tight battle in the Browns’ QB room between Shedeur and Gabriel. A two-way duel is most likely since Pickett doesn’t project as the type of guy who would dominate a camp battle. And like Gabriel, he has always been criticized for his small hands. Also, if Cleveland truly believed in Pickett, they wouldn’t have taken two QBs in the draft.
And this is all before mentioning the warm welcome Sanders received from Browns veterans like Denzel Ward and David Njoku on social media after his selection. Ward and Njoku certainly didn’t do the same for Gabriel.
So while he is a fifth-round pick, Sanders would seem to already have the inside track on the QB1 spot among this uninspiring group of signal callers. Based on the evidence, he is a lot closer to starting than missing out on the final 53-man roster altogether.
