Shedeur Sanders did something Sunday that no Browns starting quarterback had done in their NFL debut since 1999: win a game. Since ‘99, 17 quarterbacks have made their first NFL start for Cleveland. None of them won that game. That is, until Sanders pioneered a 24–10 victory against the Raiders.
The rookie quarterback has remained confident about his ability to lead an NFL offense, despite falling to the fifth round of the draft and being buried on the depth chart behind Dillon Gabriel, and previously Joe Flacco.
Walking off the field on Sunday with an NFL win under his belt, Sanders was buzzing in his postgame interview.
“The win is crazy. It’s amazing. Off of one week of practice, you know what I mean? This is one week of practice. Imagine what a full offseason looks like. It gets dangerous! But this is just one week of practice, so I’m just truly thankful, you know, that everything happened,” Sanders said while grinning ear to ear.
"Imagine what a full offseason looks like ... it gets dangerous." 👀
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 24, 2025
Shedeur talking SPICY 🍿🔥
(📺 CBS) pic.twitter.com/LmHLEQG4ZS
Sanders hadn’t had any practice reps with the Browns’ starters prior to this week as the team worked to get Dillon Gabriel up to speed following the departure of Joe Flacco, who was traded to the Bengals. After Gabriel was sidelined with a concussion, Sanders was thrust into the starting role and worked tirelessly to make up for the lost time with his fellow offensive starters.
For an offense that hasn’t had much time to prepare with its quarterback, Cleveland looked pretty good on Sunday, and Sanders thinks they’ll only get better with more time to work as a unit. As for the fans rooting against him, Sanders didn’t seem too concerned about their opinion.
“A lot of people want to see me fail. That ain’t gonna happen. It ain’t gonna happen,” Sanders said confidently.
"it ain't gonna happen" pic.twitter.com/GM7QHrEiH3
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 24, 2025
While many young quarterbacks would be battling nerves ahead of their first start in the NFL, Sanders indicated that wasn’t the case for him.
“I’m not gonna lie, I felt very relaxed,” Sanders said. “Half of that comes from preparing, studying and knowing I got God on my side.
“This is the first time I never had stress. I did the work. I did everything that I was supposed to do.”
In his first start, Sanders completed 11 of 20 passes for 209 yards, one touchdown and an interception. He was sacked just one time as he helped the Browns secure their first win since Oct. 19. It wasn’t always perfect, but he did enough to get the job done and Cleveland’s defense was finally rewarded for yet another terrific game.
Sanders may be forcing the hand of coach Kevin Stefanski, too. After Sanders delivered a winning performance in his debut, Stefanski, who had previously stated Dillon Gabriel would start when he is cleared from concussion protocol, declined to name a starter for Week 13’s game against the 49ers.
Time will tell if he’s done enough to earn another start for the Browns, but Sanders is officially 1–0 as an NFL starting quarterback. And as he confidently told his doubters, failure simply isn’t in the cards.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Shedeur Sanders Had Confident Message for His Doubters After Win in NFL Debut.
