Winning in the NFL with a backup quarterback isn’t easy. Especially when you average less than 3.0 yards per carry on the ground. However, the Cleveland Browns almost did exactly that today.
Shedeur Sanders got the start for an injured Deshaun Watson. And although his performance wasn’t as good as the box score may indicate, he also didn’t play them out of this game. His pair of passing touchdowns in the final 20:00 minutes of play gave the team a chance to win.
Head coach Todd Monken had this to say about the young quarterback’s effort.
#Browns HC Todd Monken on Shedeur Sanders: "I'm really proud of him...how hard he's worked since hes been here...to come in there and continue to battle...in terms of his work ethic, his diligence....he gave us
a chance at the end...really proud of him."
— Camryn Justice (@camijustice) November 8, 2026
Forget the nearly 300 passing yards you’ll see in the box score. That was mostly the result of three plays where the wide receiver made things happen that had nothing to do with the quarterback.
We should all take this praise from Monken at face value. Backup quarterbacks have to work hard to stay ready in the NFL. Sanders was able to do that, and it’s worth shining a light on since we don’t see the day-to-day grind that he puts in.
Does this mean that Sanders should take over as the starter? Of course not. But it’s a credit to his professionalism as a young player.
This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: Browns HC 'really proud' of Shedeur Sanders' play in Week 9
