Despite being a fifth-round pick in April’s NFL Draft, Shedeur Sanders is still drawing talk from NFL fans as he enters his first mandatory minicamp Tuesday through Thursday and attempts to climb up the Cleveland Browns’ quarterback depth chart.
As the fervor around Sanders continues to escalate, despite nothing really changing since the end of the draft, now is a good time to take stock of what Sanders needs to do to actually get the job. As the fourth quarterback that the Browns added this offseason, Sanders really does face a battle toward having a relevant rookie season, but there is a path for him to help his case with a strong offseason.
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Part of the reason there is so much excitement for Sanders is that the Browns’ quarterback room doesn’t appear to have an entrenched starter. Joe Flacco will presumably resume his role as the team’s starter, which he had for the latter part of 2023 season, when he helped lead the Browns to a playoff berth. Flacco’s experience within the offense, and experience in general, are going to be assets that the Browns lean on as they enter training camp. However, third-round pick Dillon Gabriel and Kenny Pickett are viewed as beatable for the primary backup job.
What’s interesting about this quarterback race is that Gabriel and Sanders find themselves needing to do the same thing to solidify their standing in the Browns’ quarterback room. Gabriel was the 94th overall selection in this year’s draft, 50 picks prior to Cleveland’s trade up for Sanders. Their goals are similar: get to a high enough understanding with the playbook where the coaching staff feels comfortable having them active once the regular season starts and the games start counting.
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Where they differ is the practicality of the investment and what that means for their immediate futures with the Browns. Gabriel’s investment as a top-100 draft pick means he will likely be getting the first chance at practice reps over Sanders…
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