BEREA, OHIO - MAY 10: Shedeur Sanders #12 of the Cleveland Browns smiles during a press conference with the media during rookie minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus on May 10, 2025 in Berea, Ohio. (Photo by Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images)
The Cleveland Browns slotted rookie Shedeur Sanders fourth on the quarterback depth chart ahead of Friday’s preseason opener, which means opportunity against the Carolina Panthers if reported arm soreness is not a lingering issue. Joe Flacco tops the depth chart while Kenny Pickett, who received much of the first-team reps to begin training camp, is No. 2 ahead of Dillion Gabriel. For Sanders, opportunities are waning as Cleveland moves closer to trimming the roster to its 53-man ahead of the season.
Chances are slim that the Browns, who signed veteran Tyler Huntley for another arm at practice, given recent injuries, will take more than three quarterbacks on the roster.
“How do I block out the noise? I’ve always faced adversity since growing up,” Sanders said Monday via Cleveland 14 News. “Each level, it’s always been something. When you figure out how people come at you … life is a cycle, it keeps repeating over, over and over, then you understand what game this is or what they’re doing. I can never feel less than. Nobody can ever make me mentally get out of position in the situation I’m in.
“I’m thankful for who I am, I’m thankful for who my Dad is, I’m thankful for my family. No one can make me feel bad about the blessings I do have.”
Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter!
A week of sports news in your in-box.
We find the sports news you need to know, so you don't have to.
Sanders’ skeptics have been active since the Browns took him two rounds after selecting Gabriel in April, an unexpected move after the former Colorado star tumbled in the draft.
“I just feel like in life and everything, it’s just me versus me,” Sanders said in May, via The Akron Beacon-Journal. “I can’t control any other decision besides that. So I just try to be my best self at all times.”
The addition of Huntley shows the Browns are scrambling, which should be good news for Sanders from a playing time standpoint in Friday’s game since Pickett and Gabriel are dealing with hamstring injuries and are expected out.
Former second overall pick in 2008, Michael Beasley, spoke to NFL Hall of Famer Shannon…
All-star linebacker Bobby Wagner may have just opened up a new avenue for his future…
Kyle Loftis, a streetcar media icon who founded 1320 video, died Wednesday at 43. "We…
Despite a narrow 108-102 Knicks victory, forward OG Anunoby exited late in Game 2 Wednesday…
Floyd Mayweather Jr. has dropped a $100 million lawsuit against Business Insider. Lasting over a…
The Guardians experienced quite the roller coaster ride in 2025. The Detroit Tigers held a…