The Cleveland Browns suffered a tough 23-22 road loss to the New Orleans Saints in Week 9, but the big talk after the buzzer was all about quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who stepped up to start with Deshaun Watson out due to concussion protocol.
Monken Proud of Sanders’ Battle
After the nail-biter, Browns head coach Tom Monken wasted no time praising Sanders’ performance. According to video shared by ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi, Monken said, “I’m really proud of him. How hard he’s worked since I’ve been here. He wasn’t perfect. I wasn’t perfect. But for a guy that really hasn’t taken snaps with the ones (other starters) in 10 weeks … to come in there and continue to battle , really, really proud of him.” It is clear the coach recognized the effort and fight Sanders brought, especially given his lack of reps with the first-team offense.
But More Starts? Don’t Even Ask.
Despite all that praise for Sanders’ play, Monken completely shut down any questions about additional starts this season. When asked about Sanders getting more opportunities, Monken basically rejected the whole idea. “I’m not even, How long has it been, 30 minutes since the game ended?” he said. “I’m not getting into quarterback. If we want to talk about Shedeur, we can talk about Shedeur.” It sounds like the coach wanted to focus on the game that just ended and not get drawn into future quarterback decisions, no matter how well Sanders played.
So, while Sanders put up a commendable fight under center, it seems the Browns coaching staff is keeping their cards close to their vest. The immediate future for the quarterback position in Cleveland remains a huge question mark after Monken’s post-game comments.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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