NFL 2025: Browns Face a Critical Decision With Shedeur Sanders

• Should the Browns trade or cut Shedeur Sanders?
• Several weeks ago, we speculated that it might be better to start Sanders to get it out of the way
• Instead, NFL graybeard Joe Flacco was named the starter
• If Sanders is not in the team’s plans, it might be best for all to move on

Shedeur Sanders’ Struggles Elicit an Over-the-Top Response

Shedeur Sanders’ latest performance in a preseason game against the Rams was poor. He completed 3 of his 6 passes for 14 yards. He was sacked 5 times.

This is clearly not entirely his fault. No quarterback can perform when he’s running for his life.

Still, just as factors out of Sanders’ control hindered him against the Rams, the Browns need to look at the situation in its totality to determine how to move forward. And the best path for them might be to do it without the Sanders distraction looming over them.

The entire Browns’ preseason has been centered on this 5th-round draft pick. For a rookie whose draft status would ordinarily put him on the bubble to make the roster, this is unprecedented and has not been seen since the days of Tim Tebow or Michael Sam.

Neither was the center of attention for their playing abilities. The same is true for Sanders, though Sanders is exponentially more talented.

Sanders has supporters in the media who are suggesting that head coach Kevin Stefanski is sabotaging him.

Stefanski responded forcefully to accusations that he’s intentionally putting Sanders in tough spots.

This back and forth is just a sampling of what he and the Browns are in for once the season starts.

The Likely Truth No One Wants To Acknowledge

Stefanski is in a difficult spot. After a 3-14 season in 2024, there is speculation that he and general manager Andrew Berry are at risk of being fired with another bad year. However, the expectations for this team are so low that it ironically could save Stefanski, if not Berry.

Oddsmakers think they will be terrible.

Starting Joe Flacco indicates that the Browns are trying to be competitive from the start. Flacco knows the offense and, at the very least, is a competent veteran despite being 40 years old.

If Stefanski has his way, the Browns’ QB of the future is not Sanders, but Dillon Gabriel. This preseason, there has been smoke (dutifully fanned by the media) that Gabriel’s comment about “entertainers” was a shot at Sanders. Gabriel denied it and said so to Sanders. It appears that the quotes were intentionally taken out of context to stoke controversy.

While this appears to be nothing more than a misunderstanding, it again circles back to Shedeur being a clickbait machine and the media squeezing every ounce out of him, no matter what he does.

Again, this is not his fault.

But for Stefanski, how much of this can he withstand while he’s perhaps trying to save his job?

Conspiracy theories abound.

To sum it up, a player they didn’t seem to want is sucking up all the air in the facility with nonstop questions about him.

What would a team do about that if they were making an objective decision?

Cutting or Trading Sanders Would Be an Act of Kindness

The Browns released the fifth QB on the roster, Ty Huntley. The expectation is that they will retain all four QBs now on their roster: Flacco, Sanders, Gabriel, and Kenny Pickett. Gabriel has outplayed Sanders this preseason, and that’s probably by design.

Sanders has talent. But if he’s the fourth QB on the roster, how does that benefit him as he starts his pro career?

From the Browns’ perspective, do they need to hear about this every single day, particularly if they get off to a terrible start and there’s nothing else to create buzz?

Someone would pick up Sanders, and it would undoubtedly be a better situation than the one he’s currently in. It would end the distraction for a team that has too many of them already and let them move forward, making football decisions instead of providing fodder for the media and fans.

What’s your take? Should they trade or cut Sanders?

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