Browns' Shedeur Sanders ‘keeping the focus where it needs to be' while awaiting an opportunity

New York Times

25-07-2025

On the practice field, Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders is doing more waiting than throwing — at least in competitive team-drill situations.
It's been sort of the same on the periphery, too. When Sanders was escorted from the locker room to the team's training camp interview tent Friday morning, he chose to wait on linebacker Jerome Baker to finish his group interview rather than take to the empty podium opposite the veteran.
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As arguably — but probably inarguably — the most popular fourth-string quarterback in early training camp history, Sanders seems comfortable with his new and at least semi-awkward place in Cleveland's remade and evolving quarterback situation.
'I had to wait until Jerome finished up back there,' Sanders told reporters. 'For sure, it's a respect thing. I know a lot of people want the content. I know I'm a producer, so I never want to make anybody feel any type of way about anything. So it was important that he gets everything he needs to say out, and everybody captures what he has. And now, I'm here.'
In April, the Browns selected Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel late in the third round. That extended Sanders' surprisingly lengthy wait until Day 3 of the draft, when the Browns traded up 22 spots in the fifth round to select the former Colorado quarterback and add a fourth competitor to the league's least certain quarterback situation.
Sometime in the next several weeks, there will, at the very least, be a temporary winner. The Browns have an extra first-round pick in next year's draft. And in what might be a transition year on several fronts, there are no guarantees with any of the four quarterbacks currently on the practice field.
As was the case in the spring, Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett are splitting most of the starter's reps. Gabriel is currently ahead of Sanders both when the Browns split into two fields to maximize reps and when the team is running through its early-practice drills. On each of the first two days, Sanders had to throw to an equipment manager during early drills because all of the team's available receivers had already taken their turns.
Dating back to the spring, Sanders is the only one of the four who hasn't taken at least some reps with the team's No. 1 offense. He said he doesn't 'feel down or left out' about that because 'it's out of my control,' and he said that he's mostly focused on 'trying to maximize from a mental standpoint' as he waits his turn on the practice field and studies his craft in the meeting room.
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Sanders got four plays Thursday to end the team's red zone 11-on-11 situation. An errant snap killed the first play, and an offside rusher blew up the second. The defense recorded a sack on the third, and another shaky snap preceded a handoff on the fourth. Life at the bottom of the depth chart can be anything but glamorous.
'I would say (I'm) just learning every day,' Sanders said. 'Of course, I'm learning different things. I know the opportunity will come, and whenever it comes, I want to be able to know the ins and outs and know the full everything. So I don't want to really make too many mistakes when it's my time.'
Through two days of practice, all four Cleveland quarterbacks have taken nine reps in 7-on-7 settings. Sanders has taken 12 reps (seven called passes) in 11-on-11 settings, and three of those came in an opportunity period after the conclusion of full practice Thursday. Browns coach Kevin Stefanski wants to get the fullest and fairest evaluation of his quarterbacks, so he's been adding competitive periods to the practice schedule since the start of rookie minicamp in May.
'We're trying to maximize every minute we have with these young men and get them ready,' Stefanski said. 'I think Shedeur does a nice job of keeping the main thing the main thing. He's worked very hard in the building, in the meeting room, in the weight room. He's working hard and keeping his head down.
'Attention that comes with all this is great … but Shedeur does a great job of keeping the focus where it needs to be.'
Now, the Browns are beginning the final phase of their quarterback competition while also preparing for the season ahead. Stefanski has scheduled joint practice sessions ahead of preseason games in Carolina and Philadelphia, and Friday marked the team's first camp practice open to fans. For the next four-plus weeks, every on-field part of the competition will be documented and, in some form, broadcast.
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Sanders has long been comfortable with the spotlight. Since reporting to camp last week, though, he said he's been 'cut off from the world' with the exception of some phone calls with his former Colorado teammates. He's been busy with meetings, the playbook, film and trying to be as prepared as possible for his reps — whether they come one snap or four snaps at a time.
'When I get out there, I'm not thinking about (anything) external,' Sanders said. 'I'm thinking about more in the organization, thinking about getting the play calls, executing my job, doing what I've got to do.'