The preseason hay is in the barn. All teams will trim their rosters from 90 to 53 on Tuesday.
In Cleveland, rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders believes he has done enough to make the team, despite still being listed as the fourth-string option.
“Obviously. I think, overall as a player, I’ve put in the work,” Sanders told reporters after the preseason finale, via quotes distributed by the team. “I feel like everything I do, I try to do it to my best and that’s all I can ask for. I feel like everybody feels like they should be on the team. If you ask anybody on the team, would they feel like they belong? They belong in their own eyes. I feel like I do, but I’m my own player. I think about myself in a high regard. Of course, it’s not my decision.”
It helps that G.M. Andrew Berry seems to be inclined to keep four quarterbacks on the roster, despite the fact that it will leave them shorthanded at some other position. Still, even if Sanders stays, he’ll be buried on the depth chart and a long way from playing.
Sanders added (in remarks not contained in the transcript from the team but reported by ESPN.com) that he still hopes to “be a player to be able to change a franchise.” Whether he gets that chance in Cleveland remains to be seen; however, he’s under contract with the Browns for four years. His career is in their hands, unless and until they trade him or release him.
For now, it sounds as if they will be doing neither. While that will keep him on the team, it will most likely keep him from fulfilling his goals as a player.
