The Cleveland Browns entered the 2025 NFL season with multiple options at the quarterback position. Ultimately, subpar play and an injury forced their hand to rush Shedeur Sanders on the field.
Sanders has been far from perfect, but has shown promise. Nevertheless, he’s still been the team’s best quarterback and, more importantly, he’s shown steady signs of progress in almost every start.
With that in mind, head coach Kevin Stefanski gushed about the fifth-round rookie.
When asked about what had impressed him the most, Stefanski raved about his pocket presence:
“Continuing to make great strides with making decisions with what he sees has been very impressive. The pocket movement, the ability to make plays with his feet has been impressive,” he said.
"Continuing to make great strides with making decisions with what he sees has been very impressive. The pocket movement, the ability to make plays with his feet has been impressive."@Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski on QB Shedeur Sanders on his Coach's Show pic.twitter.com/LtAb601LHU
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) December 31, 2025
Shedeur Sanders plays with a different type of poise and confidence. Unlike most rookie quarterbacks, he looks like he’s in control, even when he’s not.
He’s got plenty of work to do to improve his game, and the eye test has at times been much better than the numbers, but he continues to be an intriguing option. That’s not to say that the team should fully commit to him, but he may have done just enough to get the benefit of the doubt.
Earlier in the season, there were many false narratives about Kevin Stefanski not liking Sanders and wanting him to fail. That never made much sense.
If anything, Stefanski and the Browns desperately need Shedeur Sanders to be as good as many believe he can be. It would allow them to rebuild the offense around a player who has a cap-friendly deal.
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