Just a few weeks after Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders was looking like the chosen one after slicing up the Carolina Panthers in his preseason debut, the Los Angeles Rams reminded him why he is currently behind names like Kenny Pickett and fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel on the depth chart.
In a win that saw both Gabriel and starter Joe Flacco light up the Rams' pass defense in the first half, Sanders didn't make the most of his cameo at the end of the game. The Carolina game looked like classic Colorado Shedeur, but this 19-17 win looked like a manifestation of all of the problems with his Buffaloes tenure.
Sanders not only went just 3-6 passing for 12 yards, but he was sacked five times. Sanders' worst professional habit managed to pop up once again, as the worst play he made in the NFL was a 24-yard loss he took after consistently drifting back when faced with pressure up the middle.
Sanders was sacked five times in 11 dropbacks, while Gabriel, for all his faults, got the ball out quickly and was not sacked once. Sanders' biggest issues as a quarterback are his propensity for taking sacks and making pressure worse by continuing to backpedal rather than throwing the ball away. Unless he fixes those two sore spots, he may never see the field.
Cleveland Browns QB Shedeur Sanders must stop taking bad sacks
Even those who were skeptical of Sanders' overall worth as a prospect conceded that he has a tremendous football brain, great accuracy from the pocket, and tremendous touch on deep passes. Those who have played with him praise his leadership qualities. However, there were reasons for concern.
Sanders' penchant for holding onto the ball is made worse when factoring in his limited ability to improvise when the pocket breaks down. To compare him to other highly-touted young quarterbacks like Chicago's Caleb Williams or New England's Drake Maye, both of them can make plays with their legs and possess incredibly strong arms to make up for it.
When looking at the pure act of dropping back and ripping the ball down the field from the pocket, Sanders clearly excels. However, when the waters are muddied, the skills needed to still run an offense aren't there right now, which is why Sanders is behind Flacco and others on the depth chart.
While Cleveland is not giving him the best environment to develop those skills due to a subpar offensive line and limited practice reps, Shedeur still needs to play with the cards he's been dealt. Sanders' ability to improve his pocket poise will determine if he becomes a long-term starter in Cleveland or if he quickly washes out of the league.