“Nobody can fill those shoes…It may take two players to replace Shedeur Sanders,” Deion Sanders once said at Big 12 media day. That’s how Deion sees it. The problem is, Cleveland isn’t Texas. And Kevin Stefanski doesn’t wear sunglasses indoors. So in Cleveland? That same Shedeur Sanders is stuck in neutral. Still wearing the Browns helmet, still throwing in the rain, but somehow not throwing to the starters. Welcome to Kevin Stefanski’s world. Where rookie hype goes to die, and the phrase ‘football in shorts’ might as well be an insult.
On the Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show, former DB Tyvis Powell laid it out. If the Browns can’t afford Kenny Pickett next year, and Joe Flacco’s a rental, why not play the rookies now? Aditi Kinkhabwala didn’t hesitate to answer that. “Because you’ll be completely destroyed,” she said. “Neither is ready. They’re just not ready.” She wasn’t sugarcoating anything. Not for Shedeur. Not for Dillon Gabriel. And not for anyone hyping them up for torching defenders in May. Stefanski, reportedly, agrees.
Aditi’s tone only got sharper with each passing word. “The reality is why would you go out there, and how could you do that to the rest of the team and say, ‘We’re not interested in winning?’” she asked. “Have you looked at the schedule and the way that the schedule is starting?” Shedeur Sanders may be dynamic. He may be confident. But confidence doesn’t win games against Myles Garrett in practice – experience does. And right now, according to those inside the Browns’ facility, Stefanski doesn’t look at Sanders as a Week 1 solution.
Aditi added, “You’ve got a much better chance to [win] with either Joe Flacco or Kenny Picket than you do with these two young, young rookies who neither one of whom is Joe Burrow…expected to step in and immediately be the face of the franchise.” That comment alone hit like a cold-water bath. Burrow-level rookies get handed the keys. Everyone else gets a clipboard.
NFL, American Football Herren, USA Cleveland Browns Rookie Minicamp May 10, 2025 Berea, OH, USA Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders 12 talks to the media during rookie minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. Berea CrossCountry Mortgage Campus OH USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xKenxBlazex 20250510_kab_bk4_016
Which brings us to the elephant in the meeting room. Stefanski once had kind things to say about Sanders. Just last month, he appeared on the Cleveland Browns Daily podcast and praised the young QB’s work ethic. “He’s showing up early, staying late,” Stefanski said. “He’s got great energy, great kid, working his tail off, and he’s playing really well too.” There was even some genuine warmth when Stefanski talked about Shedeur bonding with Joe Flacco. He called their meeting room dynamic “hilarious,” even joking about Shedeur being too young to remember Flacco’s glory days. All of that sounded optimistic, then.
Now? With training camp looming, the tone around Berea has changed. Stefanski may like Shedeur. But he clearly doesn’t trust him yet. Not to lead this team. Not with the schedule Cleveland has, not with this defense, and certainly not when he’s got Flacco and Pickett to lean on. If Sanders had impressed Stefanski the way some expected, this conversation would feel different. But it doesn’t. Instead, he’s slipping further down the depth chart. And the trade whispers are starting to bubble. Still, the Stefanski freeze-out may not even be the worst part. The bigger concern? Shedeur’s reportedly not vibing with parts of the Browns front office either.
Sanders is still showing up, the Browns just aren’t sold
When Jimmy Haslam greenlit the Sanders pick, the Browns’ war room looked uneasy. According to reports, some faces turned stiff. Like they just got asked to draft a PR problem, not a franchise QB. Stefanski said the right things afterwards. “Once you’re in the building, nobody really cares where you were drafted,” he claimed. “Clearly, [Shedeur] has the talent to go higher in the draft.” But behind closed doors? That support hasn’t translated to action.
Veteran reporter Terry Pluto didn’t hold back. “For Shedeur Sanders, the reality is he’s no longer special. Not in the eyes of the NFL.” He threw in a brutal stat – only 7% of NFL starters come from the fifth round. Still, Shedeur’s not backing down. On The Barbershop podcast, G-Bush shared footage of Sanders training in Florida. Not just training – grinding. Throwing lasers in the rain. Wearing his Browns helmet. “He could have wore a baseball cap, a visor, any of that, right?” Bush said. But he wore the helmet. That’s him telling you, I’m showing up whether you like it or not.
Bush added, “Sometimes when you go to the different level…you gonna have people in your organization that don’t like that.” That sounds like a locker room problem waiting to happen or a front office chess match already in motion. But it’s not all bad news. Shedeur has believers. Dan Orlovsky says Sanders is built for Stefanski’s system. Former WR James Jones believes he’s the most talented QB on the roster. And even Terron Armstead thinks Sanders might see the field by Week 6.
So while the NFL takes its summer break, Sanders is still at it. Gabriel too. Both rookies are working. Fighting. Waiting. And come training camp? Stefanski’s going to have to stop ignoring the elephant in the depth chart. Because Shedeur Sanders isn’t just trying to win a job. He’s trying to prove half the building wrong.
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