The Cleveland Browns will start their third different quarterback of the 2025 campaign this weekend, as Shedeur Sanders is QB1 for the team’s road contest against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 12.
Backing Sanders up is fourth-year veteran Bailey Zappe, as the Browns officially ruled Dillon Gabriel out for the contest via a concussion he suffered last weekend in a loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
“While All-World defensive end Myles Garrett was not in practice on Friday with an illness, he did not appear with a game-day designation,” Cory Kinnan of Browns Wire reported on Friday, November 21. “All in all, the Browns have four players with a game-day designation, including quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who is still in the concussion protocol.”
Also out for the showdown with the Raiders are defensive end Alex Wright (quadriceps) and wide receiver Jamari Thrash (foot). Right tackle Jack Conklin is questionable with a knee injury.
Shedeur Sanders Struggled Mightily in NFL Debut Against Ravens
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
Sanders stepped in for Gabriel at halftime of Cleveland’s 23-16 loss to the Ravens in Week 11 and did not show himself to advantage. The 23-year-old rookie completed just 4-of-16 passes for 47 yards and an interception.
The pressure on Sanders in front of the Browns’ home crowd was immense, and he was ill-prepared for the spotlight due to multiple reasons. Sanders had not taken any snaps with the first-team offense all year, beginning spring practice sessions as QB4 and slotting in as QB3 for much of the regular season. Even as the backup signal-caller, Cleveland focused all of its practice attention on Gabriel, who started six games before injury led him to the sideline.
The Browns coaching staff has tailored a specific game plan for Sanders this week and also afforded him first-team reps since Monday. And while it may be unfair to expect a dynamic performance from a player who has thrown just 16 passes in the NFL, there is considerable pressure on Sanders to perform Sunday in Las Vegas given how badly he struggled against Baltimore.
Shedeur Sanders May Have Only This Week to Prove Himself to Browns
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
National sports personalities like Ian Rapoport of NFL Newtork and Stephen A. Smith of ESPN have billed Sunday’s game as essentially a make-or-break outing for Sanders — at least as far as his tenure in Cleveland is concerned.
Sanders doesn’t have to win necessarily, but he must show considerably more than the abysmal product he put on the field against Baltimore last week. The Browns have already indicated that Gabriel will move back into the starting spot once he returns healthy, and Cleveland has two first-round picks in next April’s draft, which has several potential franchise QB prospects.
As such, it’s do-or-die time for Sanders already, despite playing just two quarters of professional football so far.
“Judging from the words of Shedeur Sanders, he at least appreciates the moment and what is going to happen on Sunday. Everyone is going to be watching. This has got to be the most talked about non-first-round quarterback, I don’t know, maybe in the history of the world,” Rapoport said. “Anytime the Browns’ quarterbacks struggle, we talk about when is he going to play. That time is now.”
“Watching him play last Sunday was difficult. And the reality is the Browns did not want him on the field in that situation,” Rapoport continued. “He got barely any reps. No backup quarterback gets barely any reps. … He is going to get all of it on Sunday.”
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