Ahead of the Cleveland Browns’ game against the Minnesota Vikings in London, England, all eyes are on rookie QB Dillon Gabriel. While it’s not his NFL debut, Week 5 marks his first career start.
A few dreadful games from veteran QB Joe Flacco were all HC Kevin Stefanski needed to see before pulling the plug on the 40-year-old. Now, the attention shifts to fellow rookie QB Shedeur Sanders and when he could make his debut.
Ian Rapoport Drops Update on QB Shedeur Sanders’ Future With the Cleveland Browns
When the Browns drafted Sanders in the fifth round, it was clear he was going to be behind their third-round pick, Gabriel.
The Oregon product already proved himself by throwing a touchdown in the team’s Week 2 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Even though he only attempted three passes, he was a perfect three-of-three and threw the team’s only touchdown of the day.
Upon news of the Browns’ benching of Flacco, it was revealed that Sanders is going to remain QB3. He didn’t take too kindly to this, though Rapoport believes that if he sticks it out, everything is going to be worth it.
“The expectation is that Sanders will play at some point this season when he’s ready. When he does play, it would be with a full week of practice and a game plan built for him,” he says.
Rapoport added, “By all accounts, Shedeur Sanders has continued to improve behind the scenes. After each practice, there is extra work for Sanders and some of the reserves, and ‘his development happens every day,’ one source said. While he had a long way to go upon arriving as a fifth-round draft pick from Colorado, Sanders has worked and learned.”
MORE READING: What Happened to Shedeur Sanders? A Look at Why the Browns Rookie Isn’t Playing
Sanders entered the 2025 draft class as a highly touted recruit, one many believed was going to be a first-round talent. That turned out not to be the case as each and every team continued to pass on him, multiple times.
Eventually, the Baltimore Ravens reached out, but Sanders did not want to back up QB Lamar Jackson. Had he gone that route, he would’ve made his NFL debut last week due to the two-time NFL MVP’s injury.
Hindsight is 20/20, but there’s a world that could’ve seen Sanders starting for the Ravens and Gabriel starting for the Browns in Week 5. Instead, Sanders will continue to practice and do whatever it takes behind the scenes to increase his position on the depth chart. After all, the team can only go up from Flacco’s F grade in PFSN’s QB Impact metric.