Shedeur Sanders expected to start Browns’ first preseason game vs Panthers: report
Shedeur Sanders may be fourth string on the unofficial Browns depth chart right now, but he’s getting the nod to start their first preseason game on Friday night.
With Kenny Pickett and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel both dealing with hamstring injuries, Cleveland.com reported on Tuesday that Sanders is expected to be the first quarterback under center against the Carolina Panthers on the road.
Sanders said on Monday that he didn’t want to see his father, Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders, at practice yet due to not taking any first-team reps. But his father has something to watch right away when the Browns kick off on Friday night.
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“I don’t want him to see me get a couple reps, and he’s cheering like a good dad,” Sanders said on Monday to reporters, the first time he spoke since his father revealed battling bladder cancer this offseason. “Like, nah, you can’t be proud of me right now. I’ve got to get to where I’m going, and I know it’s a lot I’ve got to do to get there.
Sanders added that it’s “a gift and a curse” having an NFL legend father, because while it would be nice to have that support in person, he knows how it would be for those on the outside.
“We know how everybody would take it, as taking away from the team, with my own dad showing up. It’s a gift and a curse at the same time,” Sanders said.
Sanders, though, will get the first chance to show what he can do on the NFL stage with the Browns’ offense. The fifth-round pick also gets the start due to head coach Kevin Stefanski not wanting 40-year-old Joe Flacco, the team’s presumptive starter, to risk injury in Week 1 of preseason.
The Browns also signed quarterback Tyler Huntley due to the Pickett and Gabriel injuries, though he’s likely to come off the bench when Sanders’ time on the field is over.
The report added that Sanders has only seen reps against the first-team Browns defense, a formidable group, a total of four snaps, which came last week. But Sanders may have some chemistry issues with starting players like Jerry Jeudy, Cedric Tilliman, Diontae Johnson and David Njoku considering the lack of reps.
Sanders’ accuracy, though, has been a talking point at Browns camp, and it’s been in a good way. It was one of his biggest strengths while playing under his father at Colorado, and he’s been showcasing that in Berea, Ohio thus far.
Sanders knows the football world will be watching closely on Friday night just as they were during the 2025 NFL Draft, as he tumbled down the draft board to day three, where the Browns finally took him with the 144th overall pick. Gabriel was taken in the third round.
Lastly, Sanders was held out of Saturday’s training camp practice due to arm soreness, but he was participating fully on Monday.
So, he is expected to be at full strength, and this will be his first opportunity to show the Browns and the rest of the NFL what he can do at this level.
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