The Browns made a quarterback change this week to a prized rookie, but that first-year player was not Shedeur Sanders.
Third-round pick Dillon Gabriel replaced veteran Joe Flacco as Cleveland’s starter Sunday against the Vikings in London, becoming the 41st starting QB for the franchise since 1999.
Sanders, who crashed in the 2025 NFL Draft from a projected first-round selection to the fifth round (144th overall) on Day 3, was still listed at No.3 on the depth chart this week.
According to Ian Rapaport of NFL Network, the “specific reason” why Sanders was not elevated to be Gabriel’s backup this week was because the Browns “want Sanders to be successful when he’s out there, and when he plays, they want him to do so with a game plan that is made for him to thrive.”
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The expectation, Rapaport added, is that Sanders — the son of Hall of Famer Deion — will play “at some point this season when he’s ready….with a full week of practice and a game plan built for him.”
The 23-year-old Sanders, who played for his father at Colorado, conducted a bizarre interview session with reporters after the quarterback switch was announced earlier this week, in which he smiled and pantomimed all of his answers without saying anything before a team staffer shut down the session.
Rapaport reported that Sanders discussed the situation with team officials, who claimed the rookie’s message was “lost in translation.”
The 40-year-old Flacco posted a poor passer rating of 60.3 with two touchdowns and six interceptions, the second-most in the league, through Cleveland’s 1-3 start despite boasting the top-ranked defense in the league. Injured veteran Deshaun Watson (ruptured Achilles) also remains under contract, but he is not expected back this season.
The Browns own two first-round picks in 2026, so they have the remainder of the season to evaluate both Gabriel and Sanders for the future.
The Browns led the Vikings late in the third quarter Sunday, 17-14.