Browns HC Kevin Stefanski announces permanent starting quarterback between Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel

Shedeur Sanders has started the last three games for the Cleveland Browns. He’s now set to start in the remaining four to finish his rookie season in the NFL.

According to Kevin Stefanski, Sanders will finish this season as the Browns’ starting quarterback. It’s an opportunity they think he has earned through his work and play recently, namely over the last three weeks, as he continues to develop in Cleveland.

“Yes,” Stefanski confirmed in the first question of his press conference this morning when asked if Sanders will remain Cleveland’s QB1. “I think, all along, as you know, with our quarterbacks and our young players, you’re always making sure that you’re making the right decisions for our guys. And I think he has constantly and consistently gotten better in each one of these games, and how he’s approached this game. He’s been working very hard. So, I feel good about where his development is heading. He knows there are always going to be plays that he can be better, and those types of things. But he’s very intentional about getting better each and every game he’s out there.”

“I’ve seen constant improvement in a bunch of areas. But I also saw, in that game, some areas of improvement, in some areas that we asked him to improve upon. And I think that’s, you know, the fun part of coaching is developing players and giving them tools to improve in certain areas, if you will. And I think the fun part is, when you have players like Shedeur, or like our rookies, whomever it may be, that are very intentional about their own development as well.”

Sanders has played in the past four games for Cleveland, coming in as the backup in Week 11 before taking over as the starter since Week 12. That’s after starting as their third-string quarterback behind Joe Flacco, who was traded to the Cincinnati Bengals after Week 5, and Dillon Gabriel, who Sanders replaced after Gabriel had a concussion in that game in Week 11.

In those appearances this season, Sanders is 54-103 (52.4%) for 192.3 passing yards per game with five touchdowns and three interceptions, including, in his starts the past three games which the team has won one of, being 50-87 (57.5) for 240.7 passing yards per game with all of his scores and two of the picks. Sanders is then coming off of a career-best outing so far, as he was 23-42 (54.8%) for 364 passing yards, three touchdowns, and one interception, while also rushing for another score, in a 31-29 loss to the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.

Sanders ended up with an opportunity here in the back half of this season for Cleveland. He has since made the most of it, as he is now to be the Browns’ starting quarterback for the remainder of 2025.