How Browns made up for lost time with Shedeur Sanders this week ahead of first start

The game of the year is upon as Shedeur Sanders takes the field for the first time as a starter in the NFL Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders, who share a 2-8 record with the Cleveland Browns. 

Allow me that moment of levity after an intense week of discourse that dealt too much in the extremes. Sanders came into a difficult situation as a backup with no QB1 reps, played against a Ravens defense that decided to blitz the hell out of him and he performed poorly. All of those things can be true and it can simply be OK.

But as one source put it to me this week, after three straight practices for Sanders as the top QB and after a whole rookie season of work, “there are no more excuses.”

There’s cautious optimism in Cleveland for Sanders, the fifth-round pick who went from fourth on the depth chart in August to starting before Thanksgiving. Though he completed just four of his 16 passes against the Ravens (five if you include his interception), the Raiders defense is not as rabid as Baltimore’s.

“If it’s gonna work this season, this is the week for it,” said a second source.

Much has been made of Sanders not getting any first-team reps in practice before his number was called last week, so let’s clean that up. Before Joe Flacco was dealt to Cincinnati in early October, there was no reason for Sanders to take a first-team rep. But as he assumed QB2 duties, there is a reasonable argument to be made that he should have gotten some first-team reps, certainly with the benefit of hindsight when guard Wyatt Teller said after Sunday it was the first time he had ever heard Sanders’s cadence.

Dillon Gabriel needed all the reps he could get. A rookie as well, Gabriel was clearly favored by the coaching staff and personnel group more than Sanders, as evidenced by his positioning on the depth chart and where he was picked in the draft. Cleveland had weighed drafting Jaxson Dart if he would be available in Round 2 (he was not), and the Browns discussed Tyler Shough before ultimately selecting Defensive Rookie of the Year frontrunner Carson Schwesinger and running back Quinshon Judkins.

After taking Gabriel at pick No. 94, it seemed Cleveland was all set at quarterback with Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Gabriel and the still-recovering Deshaun Watson. But as Sanders dropped in the draft, GM Andrew Berry clearly saw the value of the quarterback being available at No. 144 and took him.

Sanders’s on-field limitations include holding the ball too long, not having the strongest arm and lacking the sort of athleticism his father was known for. But when he was just one play away from being the guy — as we saw last week — there were some in the building who believed he should have gotten at least a few first-team reps a week.

“We know what it will take to get him ready,” said a source. “He’s not a normal number 2 and that’s just a fact. You know he needs it and know his limitations. The goal is to win and not stick to some industry process. He needs some reps so give him a few.”

Whether it would have made any real difference against the Ravens won’t be known. Sanders only completed 25% of his passes, one of the worst by any debuting QB in NFL history. But now Sanders has been the unquestioned starter since the team took the practice field this week in its prep for the Raiders.

“He’s had a good week,” said a third team source. “Thrown the ball well and getting more comfortable. Not perfect operationally but that is expected for any rookie. He’ll make plays and we want to see how much we can limit mistakes. Good week overall though.”

League sources anticipate the Browns will get him some easy completions to start the game in an attempt to get him in a rhythm, something he told teams he preferred during the combine interview process.

Whatever happens Sunday against the Raiders, I am sure everyone will handle it calmly and keep the results well within context and perspective.

College coaches would face complicated NFL jump

A couple months ago I was told the only college coaches who could realistically make the jump to NFL head coach were Texas coach Steve Sarkisian and (for now) University of Mississippi coach Lane Kiffin, with Iowa State’s Matt Campbell and Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman as outside possibilities. Things got loud around Kiffin last week when the Giants, quarterbacked by Jaxson Dart, fired Brian Daboll, but Kiffin is clearly focused on college — CBS Sports’ college insiders say LSU is the most likely move — and the Giants are focused on a pro coach. And Sarkisian came out again this week to say he is not leaving Texas.

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We’ve been around college coaches long enough to not take “I’m not leaving” seriously in November. But today’s college football makes things different. Since the lifeblood of the sport is NIL and transfer portal, coaches have to operate differently. The NCAA moved the transfer portal to the start of January, which means teams need to have their guys in place ahead of Christmas if they’re going to compete the following year — take a look at UNC’s football roster and tell me the Tar Heels wouldn’t have benefited from Bill Belichick getting in that job a few weeks earlier last year. 

Maybe I was in the minority but I didn’t mind Belichick getting ahead of the rumors last week and saying he wasn’t interested in the NFL. Yes, it’s true the NFL isn’t interested in Belichick right now, but without the statement, that wouldn’t have stopped numerous reports over the coming weeks ahead of the portal opening linking Belichick to any number of jobs that are not the one in Chapel Hill. And though UNC’s season has been disappointing, Belichick is in line to sign 247Sports’ No. 16-ranked recruiting class on Dec. 3’s Signing Day — further reason he’d want to keep any negative recruiters at bay. 

The current college football calendar is incompatible with the NFL calendar when it comes to coaches easily making the jump. The portal closes one week after the conclusion of the NFL regular season, and league rules dictate teams cannot truly hire a coach until two weeks after the end of the season at the earliest. You would have to go back on your word from November and December, after you recruited and re-recruited all your players, after you interviewed under the cover of darkness (LOL, sure) to get the job and leave a college program high and dry in late January.

Of course, that could happen. College coaches have jumped to the pros despite obstacles in the past and they will probably do it again in the future. But that’s the state of things today.

Why Colts aren’t talking money with Jones, Taylor

Daniel Jones appears to be squarely in Indianapolis’s future plans. Jonathan Taylor is in the MVP conversation. But as far as I can tell, it’s crickets when it comes to money talks.

The Colts appear focused on this season rather than locking up these players mid-season for years to come, according to multiple sources. It makes sense on several levels, including not fraying any nerves when talking about value during what is clearly a special season.

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Indy has Jones on a one-year, $14 million deal and can franchise tag him in March if it must. Taylor signed a $14 million per year extension two seasons ago, and now the top of the market is above $20 million per year with Saquon Barkley.  

The Jones conversation seems to be more complex and heavily dependent on how he and Indy finish the season. He must also consider how charitable he may want to be with the team in a market where quarterbacks get $50 million per year deals with zero to one playoff win.

Speaking of the market, the top of the running back market has been shaped by two-year extensions for Barkley, Christian McCaffrey, Derrick Henry and Alvin Kamara ever since Taylor got his deal. He still has one year left on his deal in what will be his age 27 season, so an extension that locks him into Indy through his 20s, close to $20 million per year, would seemingly be what the market dictates.

Gannon may get another year to raise Arizona

Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon, who is 15-29 in nearly three seasons as Arizona’s coach, had one of the better quotes this week when asked about job security. 

“Not controllable for me,” he said. “I didn’t hire myself. I’m not going to fire myself.” 

Arizona owner Michael Bidwill may not fire him, either. At least not after this season. The 3-7 Cardinals have suffered big losses the last two weeks against divisional opponents, but before that they had dropped five games by a combined 13 points. 

“I don’t think [Bidwill] would fire someone who is doing a good job,” said one well-placed league source. “The coach agreed to a five-year deal and I don’t foresee the owner paying two years of salary unless it’s really bad.” 

On top of that, Bidwill is still paying former GM Steve Keim and head coach Kliff Kingsbury (at least his offset money) through the 2027 season. Moving on from Gannon and/or GM Monti Ossenfort would mean Bidwill would be paying three people at one position for at least two years. The Kyler Murray question is what looms in the desert. 

Breakthrough Bears now get their primetime love

All season long I have been impressed by how the Chicago Bears (7-3) have found new ways to win, and now they get an opportunity over the next week to really show the country who they are. The Bears have previously been in only two national windows — a Week 1 loss to the Vikings and a Week 6 Monday night victory against the Commanders — but now face the Steelers in a big 1 p.m. ET match Nov. 23, followed by a Black Friday game against the Eagles and then the Packers at 4:25 pm in a few weeks. 

Folks in the building say it’s been noticeable just how locked in Caleb Williams has been. There’s the typical “in early, stay late” stuff, but his relationship with head coach Ben Johnson is clear, and he has developed more comfortability with the playbook and even more command in the huddle. Chicago could still use some defensive help, and it would be huge if they could get Kyler Gordon and Jaylon Johnson back for that Eagles game.

If spiral continues, Atlanta purge may be on

I know a few long-suffering Falcons fans who would say they aren’t surprised by the way this season has gone, but there’s no question this has been a disappointing year for a team that clearly believed it was close to breaking through. Unless there’s a miraculous turnaround with Kirk Cousins at the helm, Atlanta will miss the playoffs for the eighth straight year, its longest drought since the 1980s.

Falcons at a crossroads? How Michael Penix Jr.’s season-ending injury could lead to big changes in Atlanta

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It has made many wonder around the league whether sweeping changes will take place following this year. Here’s what I know: those in the building feel their seats warming, and there’s no guarantees of anything with six games remaining. Second-year head coach Raheem Morris is over a group that has lost five straight — including consecutive overtime losses — when the NFC South looks like it could be won with somewhere around 10 wins.

GM Terry Fontenot is in his fifth year at the helm, after first being paired with Arthur Smith in a pandemic marriage and then surviving the Great Belichick Scare of 2024 to help hire Morris. There is no question there is talent on this roster that Fontenot designed. 

“You won’t find someone who doesn’t want to coach this roster,” one league source told me. 

But Michael Penix Jr. going under the knife again so early in his career coupled with sending away a potential top-10 pick in the 2026 draft in a season when the playoffs felt attainable — and one season after the playoffs felt attainable then — have folks around the league wondering if change will take place at the end of the year.

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Arthur Blank is one of the most patient owners in the NFL. This group showing some fight and turning things around in the closing month-and-a-half of the season would go a long way.

Winning Texans have found their formula

The Texans are 3-0 with Davis Mills and should get a healthy C.J. Stroud back next week against the Colts. We know about Houston’s league-leading defense, but the offense has done a great job in two areas in particular. Mills and the offense have turned the ball over just once in 15 quarters of work since Stroud’s concussion. 

And the offense has limited negative plays. Houston has had just nine rushes for negative yards in the past three games, and all of them came on first down. It’s clear there’s an emphasis to lean on the defense — especially Thursday night against the Bills — and Houston’s offense is staying on the field while not hurting itself. Houston is squarely in the crowded AFC wild card picture. 

Former top-10 Panthers pick in line for big payday

The Carolina Panthers opted against extending left tackle Ickey Ekwonu, a former top 10 pick, in the offseason. With a strong finish to the season against top opponents, Ekwonu has a real chance to earn big bucks from Carolina.

Ekwonu is already set to make $17.56 million next year on his fifth-year option, but surely Carolina will want to get that cap number down in 2026 as it looks to build off however this season ends for the Panthers. Carolina likely saw this group of offensive tackles looking to be paid in 2026 probably wouldn’t reset the market, so it felt comfortable enough waiting to see one more year of Ekwonu. Performing well against the likes of the Rams (Week 13) and Seahawks (Week 17) during a December playoff push will only help increase his number this offseason. Ekwonu graded out above league average last year, per PFF, and has improved again this season. 

Why should NYG care where next coach is from?

One of the things that has baffled me since the Giants fired Brian Daboll is the insistence by some of my fellow colleagues that Big Blue would do well to go with a coach from the area. What? Why? 

This isn’t college football where some background in the area will help in recruiting. Current and future Giants won’t care if their coach grew up listening to Billy Joel and Springsteen. The NFL is a global business made up of 32 entities that just so happen to be located in 30 different American cities. 

Just get the best football coach you can, regardless of whether he went to high school down the road. And if that person does happen to be from the NY/NJ area, then wonderful.

And finally: My take on the Rams’ rivalry series unis

I think the Rams Rivalries jerseys were my least favorite so far this season because I just did not like the royal blue on the sleeves. But at least these jerseys dropped the Rams’ nametags that they’ve had on their chest since the uniform redesign five years ago. L.A. added a “LOS ANGELES RAMS” patch over the left breast in 2020 as it emphasized its new location. At this point, we know the Rams are in L.A. and the patch has reached the end of its usefulness.