The Cleveland Browns lost in Week 14, but it was an exciting week for the franchise because Shedeur Sanders flashed the potential of a franchise quarterback.
Accounting for 393 total yards and four total touchdowns, three passing and one rushing, the rookie quarterback earned the starting job for the rest of the season. Now he has four more games to prove he should be QB1 beyond this year.
As promising as last week was for the rookie quarterback, the NFL is a week-to-week league. There’s a new test every week, and narratives constantly shift with each performance.
Sanders’ test in Week 15 is an important subject matter for all quarterbacks. Facing off against a ball-hawking Chicago Bears defense, Sunday will be a test on ball security.
Shedeur Sanders must protect the ball against aggressive Bears defense
Entering Week 15, Chicago leads the league in takeaways with 27. The majority of those forced turnovers are interceptions, with a league-high 18. The Bears have linebackers who can jump in windows, safeties who can break on routes in a snap, and corners who attack the ball in the air as if they’re the wide receiver. In other words, the Bears defense could be a nightmare for a rookie quarterback.
This means Sanders will have to be extra cautious about not putting the ball in harm’s way. The rookie quarterback, who has three interceptions in his three-plus games, has done a relatively decent job of that. His first interception came on what appeared to be a miscommunication while he was under heavy pressure, his second was the result of a good play by a defender who tricked him, and his third was an ill-advised jump ball in the middle of the field. While all three were avoidable, Sanders hasn’t made a habit of just throwing into traffic and allowing defenders to get their hands on the ball.
Sunday definitely won't be the day for the rookie quarterback to start taking unnecessary risk, because the Bears will make him pay. Sanders still needs to push the ball down field, trust his reads, believe in his accuracy, and occasionally give his weapons a chance; but at quarterback, ball security is job security.
For Shedeur Sanders to secure the quarterback job in Cleveland, he has to show he can protect the ball.