In Week 11, things did not exactly go as planned for Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who was thrown into the crucible of a showdown with the Ravens in the second half, only after starter Dillon Gabriel went out with a concussion. The Browns were leading, 16-10, at the time, but results from there were predictable, or perhaps even worse than predicted: Sanders went 4-for-16 passing, with 47 yards, an interception and two sacks as the Browns went on to lose, 23-16.
Now, though, the Browns have had Sanders working as a starter throughout the week leading into Sunday’s game against the Raiders. He’s gotten his feet wet. He should be much better prepared to make his first career start than he was making his first career relief appearance.
That’s the hope, at least. But for the Browns, especially in recent years, hope is drastically outweighed by history.
Browns Starters Have Had a Terrible Run in Debuts
And the Browns history Sanders is hoping to change is dramatic and depressing: No Cleveland starter has won his debut in the last 17 tries. That goes for Gabriel in his first start, in Week 5 against Minnesota in London, and covers all Browns quarterbacks going back to Eric Zeier in Week 9 in 1995.
As ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter posted on Twitter/X:
“Browns rookie QB Shedeur Sanders will make his first NFL start Sunday vs. the Raiders, and will try to do something no Cleveland QB has in 26 years. Going back to 1999, when the franchise returned to Cleveland, Browns quarterbacks are 0-17 in their first career start.”
Schefter went on to note, “The last Browns QB to win his first NFL start was Eric Zeier, who beat the Cincinnati Bengals in overtime in 1995. Cleveland’s head coach that year was Bill Belichick, and that was the year before the Browns moved to Baltimore.”
Shedeur Sanders Keeping It in the Present
Of course, that history has more to do with the Browns than it does with Sanders, the team’s fifth-round pick in 2025, a guy who was projected to be a first-rounder but who experienced one of the greatest draft-day (or week, as it turned out) drops in the history of any sport.
Give credit to Sanders and his approach this week–he has tried to keep his focus on the now and not be too concerned about Sunday being an audition to keep the QB job in the future.
“I don’t think too much into that, you know, like, I think in the moment present, today,” Sanders said. I go over the game plan and make sure I execute that. When you start moving too fast in life sometimes, you miss the small details of things. So, I never want to overlook anything.”
For his sake, here’s hoping that he is avoiding being concerned about the past as much as he is about the future.
Browns’ Shedeur Sanders Facing Troubling History in Week 12 Debut