Shedeur Sanders grabbed all the headlines as the Cleveland Browns faced the Buffalo Bills in their second preseason game. The Browns were comfortably beaten by the Chicago Bears 34-10 in the preseason opener. With Todd Monken reported to announce his starting quarterback early next week, the Bills game was a make-or-break opportunity for Sanders.
Sanders failed to impress in the preseason opener against the Bears, completing 6 of 11 passes for 79 yards and one interception. On the other hand, Deshaun Watson put together a much more solid performance, completing 11 of 15 passes for 126 yards. This performance appeared to give Watson an edge over Sanders heading into the Bills game.
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The pressure was on Sanders to deliver, with the starting role on the line for the 2026 season. The former Colorado quarterback was quick out of the gates, completing his first 8 of 8 passes for 80 yards, including an impressive opening drive that ended with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Luke Floriea.
But, the picture-perfect evening was ruined when Sanders threw an interception. A pass intended for Jermaine Terry was tipped by Bills linebacker Joe Andreessen into the air before being intercepted by Damar Hamlin. The ball seemed to be slightly behind Terry, allowing Andreessen to get a hand on the ball and setting up the interception.
The interception drew a strong reaction from Robert Griffin III. The former NFL quarterback made a clear demand while writing on X about drops that turn into interceptions, as was the case with Sanders. Griffin wrote, “Drops should not count on a QBs stat line. Drops that turn into into shouldn’t count on a QBs stat line.”
Whether it goes into the stat line or not, Sanders’ passing has to be more precise if he wants to etch his name among the NFL’s greats. For now, he has to wait and see who wins the QB battle, with Monken expected to make the decision in the coming days.
