As we near the beginning of the Cleveland Browns’ first preseason contest, the noise surrounding rookie quarterback continues to grow ahead of his highly-anticipated start on Friday.
After his dramatic fall to the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, Sanders has been a main talking point with the Browns in the national media. The 23-year-old out of Colorado is part of a four-headed quarterback room that features Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel. This battle has taken reps away from Sanders, as head coach Kevin Stefanski has given more snaps to the organization’s third round pick in Gabriel.
Due to the recent leg injuries both Pickett and Gabriel sustained during training camp, however, has granted Sanders a prime opportunity to start against the Panthers on Friday. Cleveland signed Tyler Huntley to give the team an additional quarterback ahead of the contest, which means Sanders and Huntley will be under center. But despite Sanders getting the nod down in Carolina, the national media believes that starting the rookie is setting him up for failure because of his limited reps throughout training camp.
— First Take (@FirstTake) August 7, 2025The main reason why Sanders is receiving the start against the Panthers is simple: with Pickett and Gabriel nursing injuries, it’s obvious that Cleveland is going with the “next man up” mentality ahead of Friday. As a 40-year-old veteran quarterback, Flacco has enough experience that the Browns do not have to risk playing their QB1 before the regular season, which means Sanders is next in line.
One counterpoint to this argument that has been thrown around is the idea of starting Huntley over Sanders. But despite having some familiarity with the offense, Huntley just signed with the Browns on Monday, which gives him less than a week to prepare for a potential start. Sanders may have had a limited time throughout training camp with the offense, but the young quarterback has been with the team for all of the offseason practices.
Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders works with offensive coordinator Tommy Rees during rookie minicamp May 9, 2025, in Berea. / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
To answer the million-dollar question on everyone’s minds: no, the Browns are not setting up Sanders to fail.
There has been an ample amount of noise and attention that Sanders has gained ever since joining the organization. Wether it’s been his lack of reps in camp or the idea of him being better than Gabriel, Cleveland has been heavily criticized by the media for their handling of Sanders this offseason.
However, as the second rookie quarterback on the roster that was selected in the fifth round, the way Stefanski and the entire organization has handled Sanders is completely normal. The son of former NFL legend Deion Sanders was the last quarterback to be added to the Browns roster (not including Huntley), while also being the quarterback with the least amount of experience with Gabriel. Cleveland’s first priority this offseason has been finding the team’s week one starting quarterback, which means the development process of both rookies has taken a back seat.
If you still believe that starting Sanders in a preseason game is setting himself up for failure, ask yourself this question: does a team that is in desperate need of a franchise quarterback want one of their players to fail? This is not a big conspiracy. The Browns selected two quarterbacks in the draft in hopes that one of them pans out in the future, not to sabotage Sanders’ professional career.
The stakes are not high for Sanders on Friday night. If he struggles against the Panthers, it will not be the end of the world for the young talent. It’s clear that he needs development, just like any rookie quarterback.
