Stephen A. Smith has a clear demand for Shedeur Sanders as he takes over the Cleveland Browns’ offense: keep the wins coming.
With Cleveland sitting at 5-3, the Smith expects Sanders to keep the Browns’ playoff push on track against the New Orleans Saints. Sanders enters his first start of the season after spending most of the year behind Deshaun Watson, trading a supporting role for a chance to shape Cleveland’s postseason hopes.
“Now, the chance has arrived for Shedeur Sanders. And with them having a winning record and vying for supremacy within the AFC North, the defense showing up and being legit, this is a big opportunity for Shedeur Sanders,” Smith said. “If you show that you belong out on that field, if you ain’t playing for Cleveland, you’ll be playing for somebody else. But it’s his opportunity to show it because they were winning games without him. Now, you gotta make sure they’re winning games with you. This is your opportunity. Otherwise, nobody can say anything, regardless of who his daddy is.”
Cleveland needs a response after losing 27-6 to Pittsburgh, and its new starter is inheriting an offense with problems to solve. Sanders has a chance to make that response an emphatic one and give the Browns something to think about.
Shedeur Sanders Has More to Prove in Second Season
Watson has cleared concussion protocol, but Sanders will start after a full week of first-team preparation. Watson could still backup Sanders but the Browns did not make a decision on Saturday after Watson was cleared.
Sanders’ opportunities on the field this season have been limited. He has completed all three of his passes this season for 2 yards. Those brief relief appearances offered little opportunity to establish a rhythm or demonstrate the improvements Cleveland’s coaches have described.
His rookie season provided a larger, mixed sample. Sanders started Cleveland’s final seven games, winning three, and finished the year with seven touchdown passes against 10 interceptions. He completed 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards across eight appearances.
The Browns then gave him a chance to compete with Watson under a new coaching staff. Watson won the job, leaving Sanders to develop in the No. 2 role.
“He’s very diligent and he likes to play football, has a natural confidence about him.” Monken said. “Just like any young player, they’ve got to play. … where he’s improved is his footwork, his drops, his mechanics, understanding where to go with the ball, sense of urgency in terms of working through his progressions, protections. There were so many things he needed to work on, and he’s done that like any young player. Any young player has a lot to work on, especially at the quarterback position. And you can see that from the moment we got here and that’s why we opened up the competition and we split the reps was because of his ascent.”
Browns Need Answers Around Their New Starter
Sanders will be working behind an offensive line coming off an eight-sack game. The Saints feature Chase Young and Carl Granderson, who have combined for 12.5 sacks this season, creating a tough test for Cleveland’s protection.
The Browns also need their rushing attack to help keep the offense out of difficult passing situations. Cleveland averages 97.6 rushing yards per game — which ranks in the bottom 10 in the league.
Sanders did get some encouraging news ahead of his first start of the season. Harold Fannin Jr. is expected to play after dealing with a groin issue during the week. He leads the Browns with 35 catches and 411 receiving yards.
The Browns are a 3.5-point road underdog against the Saints. After the trip to New Orleans, Cleveland will be at home for four consecutive games.
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