Cleveland Browns’ rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders finally made his first start last week in a win over the Las Vegas Raiders. Fans had been begging to see him for months, and he delivered to the tune of 209 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.
While head coach Kevin Stefanski had previously stated that Dillon Gabriel would remain the starter once he recovered from his concussion, he walked that back earlier in the week when he quickly named Sanders the starter against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday. It will be interesting to see how Sanders fares against a much tougher matchup, and ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith recently revealed what his expectations are for the rookie.
During a recent episode of First Take, Smith and company discussed Sanders and his expectations heading into Sunday’s matchup.
They particularly discussed how long of a grace period he should get as the starter, and Smith kept it simple.
“Continue to build on his performance from last week. Don’t get worse, get better. If you find a way to continue to elevate and grow despite being handcuffed, to some degree, because your offense is bereft of the weapons necessary to really make some noise, then that’s going to speak volumes for him and it’s going to send the message that he should be that guy moving forward.”
Sanders Shows Big-Play Potential in Offense’s Turnaround
Sanders’ ability to extend plays and give his receivers a chance to make things happen deep down the field was a revelation last week. He had three completions that were longer than any completions Dillon Gabriel had all season, which provided plenty of reason for fans to get excited about the rest of the season.
This offense wasn’t worth watching for nearly all of the season’s first ten games, but it was encouraging to see what took place against Vegas.
Sunday will be a much tougher test, but if Sanders can do what Smith said and simply focus on improving and elevating the weapons around him, he’ll be just fine.
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