Shedeur Sanders’ impressive NFL start comes to a crashing halt as he endures ‘worst possible’ game for the Browns
Shedeur Sanders’ flying start to life in the NFL came to an abrupt halt on Saturday afternoon after he was sacked a worrying five times by the Los Angeles Rams.
Sanders – fourth on the Cleveland Browns depth chart – was given another chunk of playing time in the team’s third preseason game, but he struggled to reach the highs of his first appearance against the Panthers.
In his first game, he threw two touchdown passes and was widely regarded as the standout performer of Week 1 of preseason, across the entire league.
Now, though, the headlines are far more critical, after he was thrust into the deep end against the Rams and struggled to stay afloat.
After coming on in the second half, he completed just three of his six throws for a total of 14 yards and was sacked a remarkable five times, for a loss of 41 yards.
In one particular play, he was slammed by fans for producing the ‘worst possible’ decision, dropping back from the 40-yard line, only to be brought down on his own 22.
Shedeur Sanders stands with a towel over his head during his five-sack performance
Sanders is hauled to the ground by Rams linebacker Jamil Muhammad in the third quarter
‘He’s got to roll out and throw it away,’ was the call from the play-by-play announcer, and fans on social media were just as critical of the young quarterback.
‘Sanders sucks and he keeps proving it,’ was the response from one, while another claimed: ‘They should cut that bum Sanders.’
Others, meanwhile, were on his side and instead blamed a ‘dreadful’ front office that have not given him the tools he needs to succeed in the NFL.
‘So Kevin Stefanski gives Dillon Gabriel easy, short routes with max protection,’ one viewer claimed. ‘And then gives Shedeur Sanders bulls*** plays with an OL that looks like they just ate a gang of Little Debbie’s.
‘F*** you, @Browns. Trade Shedeur.’
Dillon Gabriel walked back a controversial comment some claimed was about Sanders
Sanders hits the ground after being sacked by Bill Norton, one of five times it happened
Sanders is one of four quarterbacks vying for the starting job in Cleveland, with Joe Flacco currently QB1 ahead of Kenny Pickett and another rookie in Dillon Gabriel.
Sanders and Gabriel have already been embroiled in some controversy, after the latter was met with fierce backlash from fans when he answered a question about how he’s able to ‘tune out the noise’.
‘There’s entertainers and there’s competitors,’ he told CBS’ Aditi Kinkhabwala on the sideline during the Eagles game. ‘And I totally understand that, and my job is to compete. And that’s what I’m focused on doing.’
Fans quickly piled on the third-round pick as they interpreted his comments to be a dig at his teammate Sanders.
‘Proof that there are many ways to be a bad teammate,’ one wrote on X.
Kevin Stefanski has received some heat for throwing Sanders too far into the deep end
Following the game, in which Gabriel threw for 143 yards and an interception, he offered an explanation for his prior comments: the ‘entertainers’ he was referring to were actually the media.
‘All you in this room are entertainers,’ Gabriel said. ‘You have a job to do, and I respect it, right? And I’m a competitor, so I have a job to do as well.’
Gabriel also claimed that he had said his ‘entertainers’ remark previously.
He continued: ‘I’m all about our team… each other. I would never make that – and I’ve said it before, that’s why it’s interesting. But for me, I have to explain it: entertainers are you all, competitor, that’s what I am and all my teammates, and we both have jobs to do.’
