Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski has liked everything he’s seen out of Shedeur Sanders so far as the team prepares to rev up its quarterback competition.
The Browns selected Sanders with pick No. 144 overall in the fifth round, ending a major slide for the Colorado quarterback. Sanders was projected by most to be a first-round pick and one of the first quarterbacks off the board. But he tumbled into the fifth round and the Browns couldn’t resist.
“We felt like it wasn’t necessarily the plan going into the weekend to select two quarterbacks,” Browns general manager Andrew Berry told reporters after the draft. “But as we talk about, we do believe in best player available, we do believe in positional value, and we didn’t necessarily expect him to be available in the fifth round. We love adding competition to every position room and adding him to compete with the guys that are already in there. We felt like that was the appropriate thing to do.”
Part of the reason Sanders’ draft stock plummeted was due to concerns about his character and a public persona that some viewed as overly confident. But so far, he’s integrated well into the Browns’ system.
“Shedeur is a great kid,” Stefanski said during a radio interview with ESPN Cleveland. “He is working like crazy, like all the guys. My office is downstairs. They got to walk by my office when they come in. They get in early. Shedeur, just like all those guys, is in there early, getting his work done. He’s working really hard. I like everything about Shedeur.”
Browns QBs Won’t Get Equal Reps in Competition
Sanders is competing with Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel for the starting quarterback job. All four will have a shot at the starting gig and Stefanski gave some insight into how it might play out.
“The big thing for us is making sure we give the guys enough reps that they need,” Stefanski said. “They’re learning the system, they’re developing and we’re evaluating them. We’re finding out about them. It’s not going to be everybody gets 25% of the reps, that’s not how it’s gonna be. We want to give everybody enough reps where we can learn more about them and prepare them to get ready to play.”
Stefanski added that he’s told his quarterbacks not to pay attention to what order they go in during reps, saying it won’t be static.
Shedeur Sanders Touts Cameraderie in Browns QB Room
Sanders has carried himself well since arriving in Cleveland. In a recent interview with Kay Adams, he spoke highly of his fellow quarterbacks, praising the camaraderie in the room.
“We are all different characters. It’s funny to go in there and see Joe every day. At practice, I’m like, ‘wow, I’m really with Joe Flacco right now. We’re on the same team.’ That’s cool,” Sanders said. “And then with Kenny, the experience he has being in the league for these years. It’s cool, just seeing the process of it.
“Everybody is cool in the room. Outside of the room, people try to put us against each other. But inside the room, we know we are one,” Sanders said.
Browns OTAs are set to start on May 27.
