Shedeur Sanders, Browns' QB1 Battle 'is Going to be a Long Road,' Says Browns Insider

The Cleveland Browns reportedly don't plan on making a quarterback decision anytime soon.

During a Sunday appearance on SportsCenter, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported the competition for the No. 1 spot "is going to be a long road" as Shedeur Sanders, Dillon Gabriel, Kenny Pickett and Joe Flacco battle for depth-chart positioning. 

"Yesterday, he made a few good throws, got the social media folks piped up a little bit, so he's clearly capable," Fowler said of Sanders. "It wasn't perfect. It was a bit up and down at times. And you know, you're playing against tryout players, it's rookie minicamp. The expectations overall are pretty low. They just want the players to get functional, learn some instruction, communicate, some of those basics. 

"So right now, Dillon Gabriel, the third-round pick, is still taking some of those first team reps, I guess you could call them first team. So now they're working that out. And Shedeur's been really as advertised. He's come in, he's shown he can be accurate and can process information, so that's the good side. But as somebody with the Browns told me, this is going to be a long road. They got the next four months to work with all four quarterbacks, get them an OTAs, see what they can handle against some real 11 man defense."

On paper, a fifth-round draft pick realistically competing for the starting role before he even begins his rookie season may seem unusual. But Sanders is far from a typical fifth-round pick, and the Browns' quarterback room is far from a decided one with plenty of star power and clear roles. 

There was a time when Sanders was seen as a surefire first- or second-round pick leading up to the draft. B/R's NFL Scouting Department ranked him as the second-best quarterback available behind only No. 1 pick Cam Ward in its final big board, and he impressed while taking home the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year in his final season at Colorado.

With that as the backdrop, his slide to the fifth round ended up being the biggest story of the draft.

But he fell to a team in Cleveland that presents him with a golden opportunity to compete for immediate playing time since Deshaun Watson is sidelined with another Achilles injury.

Flacco is 40 years old, Pickett has 15 touchdown passes to 14 interceptions in his inconsistent career, and Gabriel was a third-round pick with questions about his size and overall arm strength to push the ball downfield.

If Sanders can consistently impress with his processing and ability to read the defense, he could quickly play his way up the depth chart.

It just seems like that consistency is going to need to last throughout the summer and into preseason given Fowler's report that Cleveland is in no hurry to name a starter.