When the Cleveland Browns return for training camp in late July, all eyes will be on the team’s quarterback battle between Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson. Considering all that Watson has been through during his Browns tenure, and comparing it to the promise and youthfulness of Sanders, it’s clear that Sanders winning the battle would be best for the team.
However, the question surrounding the second-year quarterback is whether he will be ready to go, from a processing standpoint, by Week 1. In his short career, questions have been asked about how well Sanders can read defenses. While fans and media members have had a lot to say in the discussion, one person who faced off against Sanders recently added to the conversation.
That person is Pittsburgh Steelers defensive back Jalen Ramsey. The veteran defender recently served as a guest speaker at the Prime Retreat, a leadership event for Deion Sanders’ Colorado Buffaloes football team. With the event being held at the Sanders’ estate in Texas, Ramsey got to catch up with Shedeur and talk about their Week 17 meeting from this past season.
When speaking to the college players, Ramsey highlighted a story from the game to emphasize how his preparation led him to know exactly what was coming from Cleveland. Playing at safety, he recognized the formation, knew the route Jerry Jeudy was about to run, and tried his best to bait Sanders into throwing the ball to Jeudy, so that Ramsey could blow the play up.
Things didn’t go according to plan, though, because as Ramsey revealed, Sanders had just told him that he was reading the Steelers’ secondary, and knew that they were all over the concept the Browns were running. That’s why the young quarterback just worked to his third option, not giving Ramsey the game-changing opportunity he wanted.
Jalen Ramsey recounts mind-game battle with Shedeur Sanders
Ramsey told this story to the young players so that they could understand the value of taking preparation seriously, on both sides of the ball. However, the story also had another takeaway: Sanders, as a rookie, was reading things out on the field, and already engaging in mental battles with opposing defenses.
Of course, the quarterback still had some low moments, like most young quarterbacks do, but his opponents were able to recognize that he was playing the game between the ears. That was only in Sanders’ sixth start, so it’s fair to assume that he has made strides since then.
Cleveland’s coaching staff has raved about the strides the young quarterback has made in processing during the spring, and Browns’ quarterback coach Mike Bajakian even emphasized how impressed he’s been with Sanders’ vision on the field. If the young quarterback continues to progress in the right direction, he'll put himself in a strong position to win the Browns' quarterback competition and set himself up for more battles with Jalen Ramsey and other defenders.
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