Shedeur Sanders' Lack of 1st-Team Practice Reps Behind Gabriel Explained by Browns HC

Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski has addressed Shedeur Sanders' lack of first-team reps in practice since he has been elevated to the No. 2 quarterback spot on the depth chart.

Asked why Sanders hasn't received as many snaps as Dillon Gabriel did when he was the backup, Stefanski explained that having Gabriel starting now means they "want to make sure he gets a lot of the reps" to continue his development track.

Stefanski did point out that Sanders is "still getting reps in a bunch of periods" in the event he has to step in.

Much attention was paid to the division of first-team reps during the preseason and training camp.

ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi noted in July that Sanders was the only Browns quarterback not seen getting any reps with the starting unit during offseason activities and the first week of camp.

The Browns did state at one point in training camp that Sanders was getting first-team snaps due to general arm soreness.

Stefanski went with Joe Flacco, Gabriel and Sanders as his top three quarterbacks to open the regular season.

When Flacco was benched in favor of Gabriel after Week 4, the Browns coach said the rookie would be ready to start in part because they worked to give him reps with the first-team offense in practices during the first month of the season.

Flacco being traded to the Cincinnati Bengals on Oct. 7 elevated Sanders to the No. 2 spot on the depth chart.

It's not a common practice for the backup quarterback to get a lot of time with the first-team offense in practices during the season.

One quarterback told Greg Auman of Fox Sports in September 2024 that the "hardest part about being a backup is you don't get any reps during the week" because there's not a lot of practice time and teams are working on game-planning for their upcoming games.

"How do you get backup quarterbacks more reps? In order to do that, you're taking away reps from QB1, which you don't want. If you want to add reps, you're putting more on the starting skill positions, their legs. Now they're running more routes. It's hard," the quarterback added.

Sanders has yet to appear in a game this season. He started Cleveland's preseason opener on Aug. 8, finishing 14-of-23 for 138 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-10 win over the Carolina Panthers.

Gabriel has looked fine as the Browns' starting quarterback. He is 61-of-103 (59.2 percent) with 527 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in the last three games.

The Browns put up a season-high 31 points in Sunday's win over the Miami Dolphins. It was their highest scoring game since Week 13 last season against the Denver Broncos.

Cleveland will go for back-to-back wins for the first time since the 2023 season when it plays the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on Sunday.