STWF Sports|CLEVELAND|Nov. 18, 2025 — Deion Sanders has worn many titles across his football life — Hall of Famer, head coach, mentor, icon. But on Sunday afternoon, he was simply a father watching his son live out a dream. And when Shedeur Sanders finally made his NFL debut for the Cleveland Browns, the Colorado head coach couldn’t hold back the tears.
“Shedeur got in today, and I told him he was going to play,” Deion said while speaking at a coaching clinic in Boulder. “I was thankful… I was in tears. He called me screaming, and I’m like, ‘I’m crying right now! Can you leave me alone?’”
The moment was years in the making. Yet the debut itself was unforgiving — a harsh reminder of how brutal the NFL can be to young quarterbacks.
A Debut That Fell Short of the Dream
Through 10 and a half weeks of the Browns’ 2025 season, Shedeur Sanders had been relegated to the sideline, promoted to QB2 only after Joe Flacco’s midseason departure. First-year starter Dillon Gabriel had taken every meaningful snap until he was knocked out of Sunday’s game with a concussion.
That opened the door for Sanders, who entered with Cleveland leading the Ravens 16–10.
But from that moment on, things unraveled.
Sanders struggled to find rhythm, finishing 4-of-16 for 47 yards and an interception, as the Browns went scoreless in the second half and fell 23–16. His 13.5 passer rating was the lowest for any quarterback debuting with at least 15 attempts since Brandon Weeden’s 5.1 rating in 2012 — a painful historical comparison in Cleveland.
Yet the most troubling postgame revelation wasn’t the numbers.
It was the preparation.
“This Smells”: Stephen A. Smith Sounds the Alarm
Hours after the loss, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith posted a blistering reaction on his YouTube channel, questioning both the coaching staff and the circumstances surrounding Sanders’ debut.
“Shedeur Sanders finally got a chance to be in the game. Ladies and gentlemen, he was awful,” Smith said. “But I’m going to say it — this smells.”
Smith wasn’t blaming Sanders’ talent. He was blaming the Browns.
The rookie admitted after the loss that he had never taken a single snap with the first-team offense, not even in practice. Some teammates even said they were unfamiliar with his cadence and snap count.
To Smith, that was unacceptable.
“How does he get zero snaps with the first team?” he said. “How unprepared did Shedeur Sanders look? Suddenly he doesn’t know the playbook? That’s not the reputation we’ve ever heard about Shedeur Sanders.”
Smith went further, suggesting the situation bordered on setting the young quarterback up to fail.
“Kevin Stefanski is a two-time NFL Coach of the Year. He knows football. But this looked bad. This looked like Shedeur wasn’t prepped at all.”
Next Up: A Chance at Redemption in Week 12
Whether the debut was the product of nerves, lack of preparation, or a combination of both, Sanders won’t have long to dwell on it.
According to Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot, Sanders is expected to start in Week 12 against the Las Vegas Raiders, with Gabriel unlikely to clear concussion protocol. Deshaun Watson’s practice window has not been opened, leaving Bailey Zappe — recently signed to the practice squad — as the emergency backup.
It will be Sanders’ first full week preparing as QB1, and his first chance to rewrite the narrative that emerged from Sunday’s struggles.
A Family Moment — and a Critical Stretch Ahead
Despite the rocky performance, the emotional significance of the moment was not lost on the Sanders family. Deion, who has coached Shedeur through high school and college, understands better than anyone the weight of expectation.
For Shedeur, the debut was not the storybook beginning he imagined. But his journey — like so many young quarterbacks before him — will be judged not by his first step, but by his ability to respond.
Week 12 awaits. And this time, the rookie will have the spotlight and the snaps to show he belongs.
