Friday night, Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders was thrust into the NFL spotlight after hamstring injuries sidelined fellow quarterbacks Dillon Gabriel and Kenny Pickett earlier this week. The fifth-round pick out of Colorado and Jackson State had the eyes of the sports world on him, and he delivered. Sanders completed 14-of-23 passes for 138 yards and threw two touchdowns en route to a 30-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers in Uptown Charlotte.

While in the game, Sanders led the Browns on three touchdown drives. Notably, Sanders completed 11 of 18 passes for 103 yards, two touchdowns, zero interceptions, and a 113.9 passer rating in the first half.

Yes, Shedeur was projected to go in the first round of April’s NFL Draft. However, when he fell to the fifth round, it was not due to a lack of playing ability. It was due to perceived distractions. A sizable portion of the mainstream media was proved wrong Friday night when Sanders turned lemons into lemonade. And predictably, when Shedeur was asked whether he would move up the depth chart, he was not concerned with the idea. 

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“I honestly don’t know and I don’t really care,” Sanders admitted to Browns sideline reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala. “Whenever it’s my time, I have to take advantage of it. I feel like I did some good, some bad, and going forward, I won’t make the same mistakes twice.”

Before he was told he’d start Friday’s game, Sanders was the fourth-string quarterback behind an 18-year-veteran quarterback in Joe Flacco, plus the aforementioned Pickett, and Gabriel. As a result, Sanders did not get reps with the first team offense. Friday night, Sanders played with the second-string offense.  

His play drew praise from many observers on social media. Quickly after Shedeur threw his first touchdown pass, Deion Sanders praised the Lord on X. Entertainer extraordinaire Jamie Foxx said Shedeur was balling. 

“He’s the real deal,” Foxx said. “Now, how y’all feel now? How y’all feel now? No matter what he do, how y’all feel now? That man [is] playing for his daddy. If you hate Shedeur, you hate football. How can you hate this story?”

Where Shedeur Sanders goes from here is anyone’s guess. However, he gave himself a C+ for getting the win while not taking advantage of the opportunities available during the game.

“I’m just getting my feet wet, it was a good practice showing overall,” Sanders told the NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe. “There’s definitely room for improvement in many areas.”

Sanders also acknowledged the support from the fans. He said he is playing for ‘people who don’t have a voice.’

“So, who I’m playing for is for people locked up,” Sanders continued. “The external motivation I have is crazy. Regardless of how I’m feeling, there are a lot of people counting on me to succeed. I got to make sure to stay positive, regardless of what’s going on.”

Itoro Umontuen

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