When could Shedeur Sanders make his NFL debut? Browns coach opts not to 'speculate' after loss to Jets

Cleveland Browns rookie Shedeur Sanders served as the backup quarterback in the team's Week 10 loss to the New York Jets. It was Sanders' return to the active roster after battling a back injury that kept him sidelined in an Oct. 26 loss to the New England Patriots. 

Sanders was initially announced as the No. 2 option in October after Cleveland traded veteran Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals. Sanders will remain behind fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel on the depth chart -- for now, at least -- and ahead of veteran Bailey Zappe, who was active when Sanders was out. With Gabriel starting, Sanders has yet to receive any game action, even in garbage time.

The Browns selected Sanders, who was the 2024 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year while playing for his father, Deion, at Colorado, with the 144th overall pick in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. While Sanders has yet to make his regular season debut, he did get some run in the preseason as he battled for a spot on the depth chart. 

He impressed with two touchdowns and 138 yards through the air in his preseason debut. 

Sanders was one of college football's most prolific passers during his time at Colorado. He guided the Buffaloes to a 9-4 record in 2024 while throwing for a career-high 4,134 yards on a 74% completion percentage. He also had 37 touchdowns passing, 15 of which went to Heisman Trophy winner and 2025 first-round pick Travis Hunter. 

When could Shedeur Sanders make his NFL debut?

Sanders' position as No. 2 on the depth chart means that he's one play away from potentially taking significant reps for the Browns. Gabriel hasn't exactly lit the world on fire in his first five starts, either. 

He has eclipsed 200 yards passing just once -- and that was when he threw the ball 52 times in a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers -- and he's gone two out of the four games without a touchdown passing. His completion percentage in that span is also below 60% (58.6%) and he's averaging just 5.0 yards per attempt. 

Cleveland has exceeded 20 points just once in Gabriel's five starts, a 31-6 win over the Miami Dolphins. The Browns are also 1-4 under his direction. Against the Jets on Sunday, Gabriel completed 17 of 32 passes for 167 yards and two touchdowns. He also had a career-high 54 yards rushing.

Given that Cleveland (now 2-7) is in last in the AFC North and, as things stand, well out of contention for a wildcard playoff spot, the Browns could try and shake things up further by giving Sanders an opportunity to run the offense at some point. At the very least, it would allow the franchise to accurately evaluate Sanders' future in the league and potential with the team. 

In a press conference on Monday, coach Kevin Stefanski was asked about when Sanders might get a chance to start and declined to say anything either way about the status of his young QBs. 

"I don't think it's fair to speculate," Stefanski said. "We're committed to getting better as an offense. Dillon is certainly committed to improving every which way he can, and all the while all of our players -- young players -- are developing and working so hard behind the scenes to make sure that they're getting better on a daily basis."

Browns fans are, unsurprisingly, growing impatient with Gabriel's struggles, and even though he threw two touchdowns on Sunday, a loss to the hapless Jets only furthers the frustration from the Cleveland faithful. Whether Sanders is an upgrade or not, Browns fans are being given little reason to believe Gabriel is the answer and want to at least find out what the Colorado product could do. 

Stefanski won't comment firmly on if or when that could happen, but the questions won't stop any time soon.