Former NFL QB shares harsh truth about Browns' Shedeur Sanders

[ad_1] Some beforehand accused Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski of sabotaging the event of rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders as Stefanski stored Sanders buried on the depth chart all through the summer season.

A day after it was discovered that Cleveland had agreed to commerce Kenny Pickett to the Las Vegas Raiders for a 2026 fifth-round draft choose, Stefanski confirmed that Sanders will enter the Week 1 matchup in opposition to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 7 because the Browns' QB3 behind starter Joe Flacco and fellow first-year professional Dillon Gabriel.

Throughout a current chat with Jason Reid of Andscape, former NFL quarterback Akili Smith defined that the tape exhibits Sanders is behind because it pertains to enjoying the game's most necessary place on the highest stage.

"For those who take a while and break down the tape, and also you perceive what ideas they’re operating, you see that Dillon Gabriel is forward of Shedeur," Smith mentioned. "Nobody who seems on the tape of these two and understands what they’re may see it every other manner. Gabriel is forward of him, and a giant factor is pocket presence. Shedeur took a sack in [the last preseason] sport…it was ridiculous. You had all these folks [on social media] blaming the road. He’s dropping again [too far]. He needed to step up within the pocket or throw the ball away. It’s one or the opposite."

Sanders took 5 sacks and accomplished simply 3-of-6 passes for 14 yards in Cleveland's preseason finale versus the Los Angeles Rams on Aug. 23. In the meantime, Gabriel linked on 12-of-19 passes for 129 yards and a landing in that contest.

Smith is amongst those that consider Gabriel’s tape from August "is simply higher" than what Sanders produced.

Sanders took an FBS-high 94 sacks over his ultimate two faculty seasons earlier than he fell to the fifth spherical of the 2025 NFL Draft. Within the eyes of some, his play in opposition to the Rams confirmed that it'll take time for him to unlearn sure unhealthy habits he picked up through the years.

"Anybody who’s acquired such a protracted method to go has to maintain his nostril clear, not activate the group and preserve working," Smith added. "He has to place every thing he has into persevering with to get higher every day. And that manner, even when it doesn’t occur in Cleveland, you’re nonetheless giving your self an opportunity. You’d present different groups that you really want this. You’d present how a lot it means to you. Then possibly it occurs elsewhere."

The Browns buying and selling Pickett signifies they're devoted to persevering with their improvement of Sanders via no less than the 2025 season. That mentioned, the potential return of Deshaun Watson is looming over Sanders' standing as Flacco prepares to start out in opposition to Cincinnati.