Shedeur Sanders matches up with fellow rookie and old friend Cam Ward in Week 14, as the Cleveland Browns are set to take on the Tennessee Titans. On the surface, it’s a toilet bowl between two bad teams who will miss the playoffs. But beneath that is a make-or-break game for Shedeur.
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At least, that’s what analyst Skip Bayless tends to believe. Shedeur has played alright in his two starts for the Browns, going 1-1, while Ward has been subpar, leading his Titans to 1-11. Clearly, one has performed worse than the other, and Shedeur needs to keep it that way.
Bayless even says that if Shedeur can’t find a way to beat the Titans’ QB on Sunday, his ride could end a lot quicker than most expected.
“This is a crucial, pivotal, make-or-break game in Cleveland for Shedeur Sanders,” Bayless said via The Arena. “If he gets outplayed by Cam Ward, I’m not going to be surprised if Deshaun Watson starts next week. Or if they go back to Dillon Gabriel, and that’s the end of Shedeur.”
“This is a crucial, pivotal make-or-break game in Cleveland for Shedeur Sanders.”@RealSkipBayless & the crew agree that Sanders has to show up this Sunday to keep his starting job. pic.twitter.com/TsStwlwuhL
— The Arena: Gridiron (@ArenaGridiron) December 5, 2025
It’s hard to disagree with Bayless. In his first start, Shedeur had several moments where he dazzled the crowd, and he walked away with a win against the Las Vegas Raiders. But in his second start, outside of a nice TD pass, he failed to execute.
On top of this, head coach Kevin Stefanski has already seemed reluctant to play Shedeur. He first opted for Joe Flacco, then went to Dillon Gabriel. Now, Deshaun Watson’s imminent return has some thinking that the coach will hand him the keys when he’s ready to play.
That’s why Bayless and many others believe that Shedeur needs to show out on Sunday. If he doesn’t, then he will give Stefanski the ammo to bench him. But if Shedeur does win the game, then the coach will be forced to continue to play him.
In other news from the Browns’ camp, Myles Garrett will be aiming to have four sacks against the Titans and break the single-season sack record. Garrett already has 19 sacks on the season with five games left to play. He would also become the first player with three straight games of four or more sacks. Let’s see if he is able to make that record.
