On Sunday, the Cleveland Browns fell to the Tennessee Titans 31-29. It was Cleveland’s 10th loss of the season, and the franchise was officially eliminated from playoff contention. The defense played arguably its worst game of the year, and head coach Kevin Stefanski made a head-scratching decision that has everyone criticizing him.
Despite all of that, Sunday may have been the best-case scenario for Cleveland.
Of course, the goal is always winning, but postseason dreams sailed away for the Browns several weeks ago. Now, Cleveland’s season is all about preparing for the future. Two things happened on Sunday that will drastically help the Browns with that: they improved their draft position, and Shedeur Sanders showed the potential to be a franchise quarterback.
Browns improve draft position and may have already found a quarterback in Shedeur Sanders
Let’s start with draft position. With Sunday’s game being between two of the worst teams in the league, the result had massive implications on the order at the top of the 2026 Draft.
By losing, Cleveland moved up to the No. 4 pick. Of course, that could change with four weeks left in the season, but the Browns have a good chance of ending the year with a top-five pick. With two first-round picks in 2026, Cleveland will have the chance to find more young players who could transform the franchise.
That could be a quarterback in the top five, or, if Shedeur Sanders keeps playing how he played on Sunday, the Browns could address some of their other needs.
After a historic day from Sanders, the latter now seems like a realistic option. The rookie quarterback completed 23-of-42 passes for 364 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception, while also adding 29 rushing yards and a touchdown on the ground. Most importantly, Sanders put the team in position to force overtime after trailing by 14 in the fourth quarter.
It’s important to note this is just Sanders' third start, after he spent months toiling away as the quarterback at the bottom of Cleveland’s depth chart. In his limited action, he has already produced several moments where he looked like a quarterback that was once expected to be a first-round quarterback, before his infamous draft slide.
After Sanders’ performance on Sunday, it’s fair to say Cleveland selecting a quarterback in the first round isn’t viewed as a forgone conclusion like it once was. The Browns could see a quarterback they could build around in Shedeur Sanders, and that would be great news, because the franchise would then be able to use its two picks on an offensive lineman and wide receiver.