No matter what fans may think about Shedeur Sanders, it’s clear that his Cleveland Browns teammates seem to like him a lot. Those on the outside may believe something different based on what they’ve seen or heard, but most players who have spoken publicly about him have his back.
Defensive tackle Shelby Harris just finished his 11th NFL season, so he has seen a thing or two during his time in the league. Coming off his third year with the Browns, the veteran has a perspective built over time.
The Browns player recently sent a clear message about Sanders, saying the quarterback is “a great kid in the locker room.”
“I feel like he gets an unfair rep from a lot of people about something they don’t even know about. He’s a great kid in the locker room,” Harris said.
Whether Sanders can become a great player on the field remains up for debate. Mitigating factors or not, he did not earn the starting job in training camp, was behind on the depth chart during the season, and only got off the bench after Dillon Gabriel entered concussion protocol.
However, after becoming the Browns’ starting QB in Week 12, Sanders held his own and helped Cleveland win three of his seven starts. Though his ceiling might not be very high, he did show improvement in necessary areas, such as his completion percentage and the ability to avoid long-yardage sacks, but he still struggled with interceptions.
Now, after a cringeworthy entrance into the league coming out of the 2025 NFL Draft, and some off-the-field issues at camp, Sanders should have a clean slate under new head coach Todd Monken. However, Monken has been non-committal about the Browns QB situation, so anything could be possible going forward.
Harris isn’t the only player who has spoken up in defense of Sanders. Running back Dylan Sampson was very supportive of his fellow rookie after watching him in action late in the season.
How much weight his teammates carry remains to be seen, but if he can keep them on his side, Sanders could have a longer career in the NFL than anyone may have thought.
NEXT: Insider Predicts How Long Todd Monken Will Last In Cleveland
