Since starting the season 1-3 and averaging a paltry 14.0 points per game (31st in the league), the Cleveland Browns made a quarterback change this week. The team is turning to former Oregon Ducks signal caller and 2025 third-round pick Dillon Gabriel to replace former Super Bowl-winning and MVP quarterback Joe Flacco.
With Gabriel now starting, many believed fellow rookie Shedeur Sanders would get bumped up to second string. That didn’t happen, and Sanders is still the third string or emergency signal-caller, with the 40-year-old Flacco being relegated to backup.
Following the announcement Sanders decided to go pantomiming in his interview, likely as a response to the comments former NFL coach Rex Ryan made about him earlier in the week.
Bruce Arians Says Why Though
In the aftermath of Sanders’ interview, former Super Bowl-winning coach Bruce Arians made an appearance on “Up & Adams” with Kay Adams on FanDuel. Arians didn’t focus on Sanders’ behavior as most did, he wants to know when did third-string quarterbacks start talking to the media so much.
“Why is the third quarterback getting interviews?”
“You got nothing to do with the game, it’s all for media clicks. And he’s a heck of a personality, but the personality can’t come out until you do something on the field.”
“It’s a big week for Dillon Gabriel, big week for the Browns making that transition. For him to even be available to the press, I don’t know why he’s doing it,” Arians said.
“To me, there’s no sense to have him available. Whoever is running their media relations should turn that down.”
Strong but true words from Arians, who led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to their second Lombardi Trophy in Super Bowl 55, and became the first team to play in a Super Bowl in its home stadium. The Rams repeated the feat two years later, winning Super Bowl 56 in their home stadium.
NFL Legend Comes To Sanders’ Defense
Not long after Arians’ comments, Pro Football Hall of Famer and three-time Super Bowl winner Michael Irvin said this on his podcast.
“Whatever he says, you find something wrong with it. The only reason they are putting a microphone in front of him is because they know he can help them get some clicks.”
Irvin also believes Shedeur having to wait could benefit him in the long run.
“The truth about it [is] this might be a sneaky blessing to have some time to learn and have some time and not have the pressure on him,” Irvin added. “What I see across the board with young quarterbacks in this league: they are being destroyed early on, asked to play as a rookie, starting as a rookie and getting in there right away.”
“Everything is going so fast; it messes with your head, it messes with your mind and, most importantly, it messes with your confidence,” Irving concluded. “I saw a different Mac Jones with the 49ers than I saw with the Patriots.”
Cam Newton Talks Shedeur And Browns
The outspoken former NFL MVP gave his opinion on the situation in Cleveland during his most recent episode of his 4th & 1 podcast. And while his take was a little different than Irvin’s, it sounds pretty accurate.
“I don’t think they want Shedeur Sanders to be successful in Cleveland,” Newton said. “Because if you were to say, ‘I want Cleveland to have a person or a figure to have every chance to be successful,’ Shedeur has been the opposite of that.”
Newton even had a conspiracy theory that the Browns only want Sanders on the roster for business purposes because he definitely moves the needle.
