Shedeur Sanders finally got his chance to play in a real NFL game on Sunday in a 23-16 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Week 11. And let’s just say, it wasn’t exactly pretty. Sanders played the entire second half and didn’t produce one scoring drive.
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The team punted on four of those six possessions, with the other two ending in an interception and on downs to finish the game. He went 4-for-16 for 47 yards and an interception. He was also sacked twice (losing 27 yards) and scrambled three times for 16 yards. But even his critics had to admit he showed some flashes on that last drive that probably should’ve ended in a game-tying TD if only Gage Larvaudin could hold onto the ball.
Overall, however, Sanders looked discombobulated and unprepared for the moment, which is somewhat surprising considering Dillon Gabriel isn’t a nailed-on QB1. And like Stephen A. Smith pointed out, Gabriel’s small stature makes him more susceptible to injury. Yet Sanders was clearly confused and unfamiliar with the game plan.
“I don’t know whether Shedeur Sanders is an NFL quarterback or not…. But how does he get zero snaps with the first team? How a player is able to say they were unfamiliar with his snap count? He wasn’t prepped at all,” the analyst said on his show.
“You’re a QB2. Your QB1 is an undersized dude, a hit away from getting concussed and taken out of the game. Kevin Stefanski is a two-time NFL Coach of the Year… How unprepared did Shedeur Sanders look?” Stephen A. asked.
Was Shedeur Sanders prepared to succeed?
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— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) November 18, 2025
Sanders, for his part, did not pull any punches on himself when it came to his performance. But he did reveal something very telling: his third-down completion to Jerry Jeudy late in the fourth quarter was the first ball he’d thrown to the WR1 all season.
“I don’t think I played good. I don’t think I played good at all. I think there’s a lot of things we need to look at during the week and go and just get comfortable with even throwing routes with Jerry [Jeudy] and throwing routes with all those guys,” the Colorado product said.
“I think that was my first ball to him all year… I think you’ve seen, it was just rough, overall… But the thing that I was excited about is just being able to get out there,” he added.
That means that despite being the QB2, just one hit away from playing, Sanders hasn’t even gotten practice reps with the first team since Joe Flacco was moved. Not a great look for Stefanski.
Sanders also talked about how his confidence remains high despite that rough introduction to the NFL on Sunday afternoon.
“This is the first time I got hit since my last game at Colorado. So, just having that feeling back is good, and I feel fulfilled overall when it comes to being out there, practicing, going in between the lines, seeing what it’s actually like,” he said, adding,
“I know I’m made for it. I don’t think there was a doubt in my mind that that final drive, [we were] going to go down there and score. Things happened and we didn’t, but I was just excited because I knew what I was going to be able to do out there.”
Gabriel remains in the concussion protocol. And while Stefanski insisted he trusts Sanders to get the job done, he also said that Gabriel will remain the starter if he clears the protocol in time for the team’s Week 12 matchup with the Las Vegas Raiders.
