LAS VEGAS — Rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders was asked by CBS before Sunday’s game against the Raiders what he wanted to show the Browns in his first NFL start.
“I’m who they’re looking for,” Sanders boldly proclaimed.
It followed his midweek bravado when he stated “I know I’m the guy’” and “you cannot miss this moment.”
Would anyone expect less from a player who calls himself “Legendary”?
But then he went out and backed it up, bringing some hope back to the lakefront about the Browns starting quarterback position. Could he really be the guy?
He was the 14th rookie quarterback to start a game for the Browns since 1999, and the first one to win it. The last one to win was Eric Zeier in 1995.
With his famous, Hall of Fame dad, Deion Sanders in the house and sporting a bright, white cowboy hat, Sanders put on a Prime Time performance in a 24-10 victory over the Raiders, who fell to 2-9.
The victory snapped a 13-game road losing streak for the Browns, and improved them to 3-8.
It also had Browns fans wondering why they didn’t go to their fifth-round pick sooner, instead starting third-round pick Dillon Gabriel for six games, during which the Browns went 1-5.
There should be no question that the Browns will stick with Sanders for next Sunday’s visit from the 49ers, and beyond. The offense hasn’t shown this much life and energy all season.
With his elite accuracy and touch on full display, Sanders went 11 of 20 for 209 yards with one touchdown and one interception for an 87.3 rating. It wasn’t always pretty, but he built on some of the good plays he made in the two-minute drive in the loss to the Ravens last week, and deserves a much longer look.
After the game, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski was asked who would be the starter for next Sunday’s home game against San Francisco, Sanders or Gabriel.
“I’m not going to get into that,” Stefanski said. “Obviously proud of him and proud of this offense. … But I’m just going to worry about today.
“… I’m always going to take my time and do what’s best for the football team.”
With 8:18 left in the game, Sanders floated a short swing pass to rookie running back Dylan Sampson in the right flat, and watched him sprint 66 yards up the right sideline to increase the Browns lead to 24-3. It marked Sanders’ first NFL touchdown pass.
The Raiders were dominated all game by the Browns’ swarming, attacking defense that sacked Geno Smith 10 times, one shy of the club record. Myles Garrett got three for a total of 18 on the season to break his own team record of 16.0.
The Raiders narrowed the gap to 24-10 on a 5-yard TD pass to Ashton Jeanty with 5:16 to play.
Sanders threw an interception in the second quarter, but the defense held Vegas to a field goal. He was almost picked off a few other times, but his big plays and his poise under pressure outweighed the few mistakes.
On his fourth drive of the game, he found tight end Harold Fannin Jr. over the middle for 17 yards.
And on third and 9 from near midfield, he rolled left to avoid the blitz and heaved a 52-yard pass to rookie Isaiah Bond. The pass — longest play for the Browns this season — set up Quinshon Judkins’ second wildcat TD of the game for a 14-0 lead. Sanders and Judkins put their “wrists up” — Sanders’ signature move — after the score.
The Browns extended their lead to 17-3 with 12:08 left in the game on a 53-yard field goal by Andre Szmyt.
On that drive, Judkins was in the medical tent for the second time, and then stood on the sideline while fellow rookie Dylan Sampson replaced him, ripping off a season-long 26-yard run.
Judkins returned a drive later.
Sanders often consulted on the sidelines with Deshaun Watson, who made his first road trip of the season in part because he’s healthy enough, and in part because the Browns knew he’d be a tremendous help to Sanders.
The game began with a huge embrace in the tunnel between Shedeur and Deion Sanders, who coached Shedeur from Pee Wee football through his two years at Colorado. Deion made a Sanders-style flashy entrance with the cowboy hat and plenty of bling around his neck, including a diamond-studded cross and a diamond-encrusted whistle with his former NFL number 21 on it.
Deion contemplated coming during the week, and decided it was the right thing to do.
“You don’t want to be his distraction,” he had told Colorado reporters during the week. “But then you think, you know he came all the way up here to see you? So that’s even a shorter trip to go see him.
“You start thinking that as a dad.”
Shedeur surprised his dad on the Browns’ bye week by visiting him as he coached Colorado.
Last week, when Sanders replaced Gabriel in the second half of the 23-16 loss to the Ravens, Deion cried tears of joy. Sanders struggled early on, but almost pulled off the come-from-behind victory when he hit fellow rookie Gage Larvadain in the hands with the potential game-winning touchdown pass. Cornerback Chidobe Awuzie broke up the pass.
“I know the fight behind the fight,” Deion said at his weekly Tuesday news conference. “I know what’s been transpiring behind the curtains, and I’m just proud of him. Because he’s not just saying the right things, he’s doing and living the right things. That’s just who he is.
“He’s a Sanders.”
Sanders’ starting debut followed his first snaps with the starting offense in practice this week.
To that point, Sanders had worked primarily with the rookies and backup receivers on the scout team and during periods with the Browns’ younger players after practice.
Even when he was elevated to No. 2 behind Gabriel in Week 5, he still got no first-team reps.
“Whenever I get on scout team, that’s my game day,” Sanders told cleveland.com in September. “Everybody knows. So that’s me having a game every week. I look at it, I have six games a week, so I’m happy rather than just having one game a week, on the weekends. The scout team receivers, all of us, we all know every day is game day and we definitely approach everything in that fashion.”
Sanders, who started out No. 4 on the depth chart in the Browns four-way quarterback competition, also made the bold proclamation in September that he could outperform other NFL quarterbacks.
“I know if you see the quarterback play in the league right now, I know I’m capable of doing better than that,” he said.
The Browns, who passed on Sanders six times in the NFL draft after many thought they’d take him at No. 2 overall, brought him along slowly but intentionally, with plenty of one-on-one film study with Stefanski in his office to go over his practice tape from the day before.
The extra work certainly paid off, and Sanders was supported by the Browns’ championship-caliber defense, one that’s been relentless of late.
With a defense like this, some good quarterback play and all the amazing rookies on the team, the future looks bright for the Browns, even at 3-8.
Defense bails out Jerry Jeudy after fumble
The Browns’ smothering defense bailed out Jeudy with a clutch three-and-out after safety Jeremy Chinn punched the ball out of Jeudy’s hands after a 39-yard catch and run. The Raiders recovered at the Browns’ 24, but netted only 3 yards before punting to keep the score 14-3 Browns.
On the pass to Jeudy, Sanders rolled right to avoid pressure and calmly lifted the pass to him toward the right sideline, where he rumbled upfield before Chinn caught him from behind and smacked the ball out.
But it was a vintage Sanders play, with his elite accuracy and deft touch on full display.
Sanders’ second INT of the season leads to Raiders field goal to pull to within 14-3
Sanders looked for Jeudy on a curl route to the left on the first play of a second-quarter drive, but defensive end Charles Snowden picked him off to start the Raiders at the Browns 26. Fortunately for Sanders, the defense held Vegas to only a 41-yard field goal to narrow the gap to 14-3.
Kicker Daniel Carlson had missed a 48-yarder wide left on the previous drive.
It was Sanders’ second interception of the season after he threw one during last week’s 23-16 loss to the Ravens.
Sanders’ 52-yard bomb leads to TD
After a second three-and-out on his third drive, Sanders lit it up on fourth possession with a 17-yard strike to Fannin on the first play, and then rolled right to escape pressure on third down and launched the 52-yard bomb to Bond to the Raiders’ 2.
It was the longest play for the Browns this season, with the previous long pass being a 35-yard to Bond. It also earned a “wow” look from Myles Garrett, who chest-bumped Isaiah McGuire after the play. It was the kind of explosive play the team has been waiting for all season.
For the second time in the game, Judkins took a direct snap as the wildcat QB and rumbled in for the TD, courtesy of a Joel Bitonio block. That made it 14-0 Browns with 48 seconds left.
Browns take a 7-0 lead
Sanders went three-and-out on his first drive after Judkins was stopped for no gain on first down and then he Sanders threw short passes to Harold Fannin Jr. and Isaiah Bond.
But the Browns opened the scoring on an 8-yard direct-snap touchdown run by Judkins to make it 7-0 with 8:24 left in the first quarter after Gage Larvadain’s 44-yard punt return. The long return and a Raiders penalty started the Browns at the Vegas 13, and Judkins gained 5 yards on first down before taking the direct snap and following Joel Bitonio’s block for the score.
Next
The Browns will take on the San Francisco 49ers next Sunday at 1 p.m. at Huntington Bank Field.
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