Cleveland Browns general manager non-committal on whether Shedeur Sanders will have an opportunity be the team's starting QB in 2026
When Shedeur Sanders took over under center for the Cleveland Browns in Week 12, there was a glimmer of hope that he might turn out to be the team's franchise quarterback for years to come.
The results were mixed over the final seven games of the regular season, though. Sanders showed some notable growth in key areas, but also produced plenty of inconsistent moments as well, which was too be expected for a rookie QB.
With the 2025 season now in the rearview mirror, an important question looms large regarding how the Browns will build out their QB room in the year ahead. While some seem convinced Sanders has earned himself the right to start for the franchise in 2026, with a bolstered offense around him, Browns general manager Andrew Berry isn't ready to commit to the fifth-round pick just yet.
"We're going to do our work on the quarterback market," Berry said. "It's too important of a position and it's something that has to be solidified. I can't sit here and tell you today whether the solution for, or the starter in 2026 is internal or external. But it's something that we're going to work through over the next several weeks."
The comments make it abundantly obvious that Berry will explore all avenues, "internal and external," to potentially improve the quarterback room. It's a telling response from the man tasked with fixing the team's shortcomings this offseason in the aftermath of head coach Kevin Stefanski being fired on Monday.
Berry also made it known that whoever fills that void will have a heavy influence in constructing the team's quarterback room. Sanders very well could be part of it, but for now at least, the organization was unwilling to definitively say one way or another what Sanders' role will be.
That doesn't mean Berry wasn't pleased with his development this season.
"I think we saw a lot of progress with Shedeur this year," he stated. "I think that's both mentally, physically, playing the position. He's still very much a work in progress, like many rookie quarterbacks are. But I think we saw some really good things in terms of his playmaking, his accuracy, his ability to extend with his feet.
"And I think I'd also give him credit, as well as our offensive staff, for bringing him along in terms of his pocket management, his situational awareness and things of that nature."
In seven and a half games, Sanders was able to finish as the team's leading passer, despite three quarterbacks starting at different points of the season. The Colorado product completed 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards, tossed 7 touchdowns, but also 10 interceptions.
It didn't help that the offense saw a rotating cast of characters starting along the offensive line, and that inconsistencies at the skill positions held back the unit as a whole. There's something to be said for the team getting a look at Sanders' with a better offense around him.
Sanders is leaving those decisions up to Berry and the powers that be.
"I think I did what I was able to do and I definitely grew from a lot of things and I got experience now," the rookie said. "So I’m always the same confidence-wise, I’m there, but that’s not in my hands. That’s not my decisions. I can’t speak on what other people feel."