{"id":858514,"date":"2025-06-27T19:13:08","date_gmt":"2025-06-28T00:13:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/06\/27\/best-quarterback-out-there-shedeur-sanders-backed-to-start-week-1-as-clear-browns-favorite-emerges\/"},"modified":"2025-06-27T19:13:08","modified_gmt":"2025-06-28T00:13:08","slug":"best-quarterback-out-there-shedeur-sanders-backed-to-start-week-1-as-clear-browns-favorite-emerges","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/06\/27\/best-quarterback-out-there-shedeur-sanders-backed-to-start-week-1-as-clear-browns-favorite-emerges\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Best quarterback out there’ – Shedeur Sanders backed to start Week 1 as clear Browns favorite emerges"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Despite entering the NFL as the 144th overall pick, Shedeur Sanders is generating as much buzz as anyone else in the league right now.<\/strong><\/p>\n

After an all-time slide to the fifth-round<\/a> of the 2025 draft — despite being tipped by many as a top prospect — the Colorado Buffaloes quarterback landed with the Cleveland Browns<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\"Sanders<\/a><\/p>\n

4<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

Sanders arrived in Cleveland as a fifth-round pick, but has been tipped to challenge<\/span>Credit: Getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

He wasn’t even the first signal caller the franchise selected on draft weekend, with Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel arriving ahead of Sanders<\/a> as a third-round pick.<\/p>\n

The pair have joined a quarterback room that is led by veteran Joe Flacco<\/a>, and they also have competition in the form of 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett, who has arrived in Cleveland after spells with the Philadelphia Eagles<\/a> and Pittsburgh Steelers<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Deshaun Watson, who signed a $230million contract with the Browns<\/a>, is not expected to be a factor next season after undergoing surgery for a re-rupture to his right Achilles tendon.<\/p>\n

While there’s no doubt the quarterback room is crowded, and Flacco is the presumed Week 1 starter, it also offers an opportunity for a rookie to come in and snatch the role.<\/p>\n

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MORE FROM NFL<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n

According to one Browns insider, that’s exactly what Sanders could do.<\/p>\n

ESPN Cleveland’s Aaron Goldhammer on Thursday offered a massive endorsement of the young quarterback.<\/p>\n

“I have come to a realization, oh boy, by the time we get to September\u2026 I think there’s a way Shedeur Sanders starts the first game,” Goldhammer said.<\/p>\n

“Now that I’ve seen some videos and talked to a bunch of people and multiple practices, I think Shedeur Sanders was the best quarterback out there yesterday.<\/p>\n

“I think now Shedeur is putting the draft slide behind him and showing why Mel Kiper thought he was the best quarterback in this draft.”<\/p>\n

Goldhammer’s suggestion is certainly bold, and it’s not one that’s been echoed by all of his fellow insiders.<\/p>\n

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\"Sanders<\/a><\/p>\n

4<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

Sanders has emerged as a solid QB option for the Browns, according to one insider<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Zac Jackson of The Athletic has reported that in the early stages of the four-man quarterback competition, veteran Flacco is ahead of rookies Gabriel and Sanders.<\/p>\n

“Flacco is probably ahead of Kenny Pickett, too,” Jackson wrote this week.<\/p>\n

“Flacco throws the ball in a practice setting better than any of them. Add his overall experience, and he\u2019s the favorite to win the job, unless (Kevin) Stefanski and others in the organization just favor Pickett — or unless Pickett outplays Flacco in the coming months.”<\/p>\n

Of course, there is plenty of time for things to change ahead of the new season.<\/p>\n

Sanders has already been impressing in practice, and has even broken one of Baker Mayfield’s NFL records<\/a> on the practice field.<\/p>\n

While the 23-year-old is showing positive signs, Pickett will apparently need to step up his game if he’s going to take the starting role.<\/p>\n

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\"BEREA,<\/a><\/p>\n

4<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

Sanders has been showing promising signs in early practice sessions<\/span>Credit: Getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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\"Pickett,<\/a><\/p>\n

4<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

Pickett, meanwhile, has reportedly been struggling with the Browns<\/span>Credit: Getty Images – Getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Browns writer Scott Petrak noted that during Wednesday’s OTAs, the 27-year-old played with the first team in 11-on-11 drills and ‘struggled’.<\/p>\n

Petrak added that Pickett was ‘nearly intercepted multiple times’ during practice.<\/p>\n

Perhaps then, if Sanders continues to impress, there is a window for him to stake a claim for that starting spot.<\/p>\n

He has already proved he’s willing to put in the work, and on Saturday posted a carousel of black and white, high-energy photos from Browns practice. <\/p>\n

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Footage catches Shedeur Sanders ‘breaking’ Baker Mayfield’s NFL record<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The soundtrack he chose for the post<\/a>, which did not feature a caption, was Kylie Minogue’s 2001 hit ‘Can’t Get You Out of My Head.’<\/p>\n

It has already racked up more than 125,000 likes on Instagram.<\/p>\n

As Sanders continues to make an impression both on and off the field, Browns head coach Stefanski is not likely to confirm his QB decision until August rolls around. <\/p>\n

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Read More on talkSPORT<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n

But one thing is for sure: All eyes will be on Cleveland in the coming months.<\/p>\n

Stay up to date with the latest from the NFL across all platforms – follow our\u00a0<\/span>NFL Facebook page<\/a>, subscribe to our\u00a0<\/span>talkSPORT End Zone YouTube channel\u00a0<\/span><\/a>for all the offseason\u00a0<\/span><\/span>news, interviews and more<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Oliver Browning
Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Despite entering the NFL as the 144th overall pick, Shedeur Sanders is generating as much buzz as anyone else in the league right now. After an all-time slide to the fifth-round of the 2025 draft — despite being tipped by many as a top prospect — the Colorado Buffaloes quarterback landed with the Cleveland Browns.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":858515,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24018,27719],"tags":[5189,7947],"class_list":{"0":"post-858514","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-best","8":"category-quarterback","9":"tag-best","10":"tag-quarterback"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/858514","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=858514"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/858514\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/858515"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=858514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=858514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=858514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}