There’s no doubt that the NFL is an incredibly difficult league for any player-it’s the most competitive in the world-but there’s one player in particular who has suffered because he never expected to go through what’s happening to him: Shedeur Sanders. He finished the last seven games for the Cleveland Browns as the starter, but his future remains uncertain.
Before the last draft, all Shedeur Sanders could think about was making it to the NFL in the first round and becoming a star. However, he never imagined what actually happened: he was the sixth quarterback selected, and he ended up going in the fifth round when the Cleveland Browns picked him at 144th overall.
When he arrived in Cleveland, Head Coach Kevin Stefanski had three quarterbacks ahead of him: Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and Dillon Gabriel. After those three, Shedeur Sanders’ name appeared. It wasn’t until they gradually moved on that Sanders’ opportunity came in Week 11 of the NFL season.
Shedeur Sanders has nothing guaranteed for next season
Sanders started the last seven games for the Browns, throwing 7 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions. The truth is, he clearly performed better than Joe Flacco and Dillon Gabriel. Still, a new head coach, Todd Monken, has arrived, and it’s not yet clear if Sanders is being considered for the starting role.
Most believe the competition will be between Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders, but the Browns could also be interested in Ty Simpson, the quarterback from Alabama. If they select Simpson in the early rounds of the draft, Sanders could face consequences, according to Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot:
“If they draft Ty Simpson high, he would come in, I would think, ahead of Shedeur Sanders, and probably then competing with Deshaun Watson for the starting job at the jump of 2026, but it’s hard to say. If you draft a first-round quarterback, he’s gonna jump to the head of the class,” she said on 92.3 The Fan Cleveland.
It’s increasingly likely that Ty Simpson could be the second quarterback selected in the draft, after Fernando Mendoza, who is projected as the first overall pick. Simpson, who played at Alabama, didn’t look great in his final game at the Rose Bowl against Indiana but finished the season strong with over 3,500 yards and 28 touchdowns.
It’s clear that Todd Monken urgently needs to fix the Browns’ offense, which was one of the worst in the NFL. He has done excellent work as an offensive coordinator, especially with the Ravens, and now his mission is to bring direction to Cleveland-a unit that has been a true disaster.
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