BEREA, Ohio — After holding a joint practice against the Buffalo Bills in Berea, the Cleveland Browns play host to them once more, this time at Huntington Bank Field for their second preseason matchup. Getting the start at quarterback this week is Shedeur Sanders.
Sanders ended the 2025 season as the Browns' starting quarterback, taking over the role in Week 12. He did so after a spring and summer with no first-team reps. This year's offseason workouts and training camp have been much different for Sanders, who is in a competition for the starting role this year with Deshaun Watson. Sanders has split first-team reps with Watson while continuing to grow and develop as he prepares for Year 2 in the league.
With Watson getting the start in the first preseason game against the Bears, Sanders came in the second half, playing the third quarter and a few reps into the fourth. Now, for the second game against the Bills, that will switch, and Sanders will start the first half.
Before the game, Sanders sat down with News 5 for an exclusive 1-on-1 interview.
You can watch the interview in the player above.
Sanders talked about his excitement for the season, the support the quarterbacks all have for each other and what we haven't seen from him yet that he expects to bring to the field—which includes a "free mind" under center.
Here's what he had to say:
Camryn Justice: Shedeur, you've had a full offseason without having to worry about Pro Days or the Combine or the Draft, just working and prep for Year 2. With the spring, the summer, and a preseason game in the books, how are you feeling?
Shedeur Sanders: I feel really good. I'm excited about everything. Excited about the team. Excited about, overall, us players banding together a little more, spending this time together. So I'm excited.
CJ: You had three drives in the first preseason game in Chicago. What are you taking from those reps as you prepare for this start this week against the Bills in the preseason?
SS: Just certain mental notes I need to take into the next game, obviously, and apply them. Play more of a cleaner game, I would say. See how to stay consistent within those drives and keep it going. I know I had a couple of batted balls and stuff, so I understand what I got to do better to fix that and not really give a tip sometimes if I'm throwing in those gaps and lanes and stuff like that, so just taking those things and applying them.
CJ: Last year you weren't getting first team reps. This year you are. I know every rep is important, but how big is it just to have the opportunity to get that work in?
SS: It's more of a feeling. It's like you don't really get butterflies. And I love talking to Taylen [Green] just in general, just about how he feels and just his perspective of things and everything because I'm able to give him my insight on when I was in a similar position and what to do to make sure that you're not behind the curve. So that's what I appreciate is just being able to at least be there for him and help him in whatever way I can.
CJ: I like that you mentioned Taylen. We talk about the quarterback competition so much, and I think some people, when they hear quarterback competition, they think like knock 'em down, drag 'em out, every man for himself. But we see you guys out here having fun, talking in between reps, really kind of learning from each other. What do people not understand about the QB room and the QB battle this year?
SS: I think we all understand we work better together as one. There's different things we see; we help each other out and not be selfish. Everybody wants to be successful. Everybody has a goal. If I got information and I don't share, or if you have information you don't share, it's like, are you really a genuine person?
CJ: There's been so much change from last year to this year: new offensive line, new weapons, new head coach. When you think about your game, how do they feel like a fit for you?
SS: Any situation is a fit for me; honestly, it's just within myself. I have to get the lay of the land. The fact that we have all these new weapons and new teammates and new everything is amazing. You couldn't really ask for too much more, honestly, but I think for me, in general, I don't want to live my life thinking about things that if I had this or live in that world, because you're always going to be wanting stuff. I think I'm content with everything that we have as an organization, and overall it's just up to me to maximize it.
CJ: The fit doesn't matter to you because you're going to make it fit is what you're saying.
SS: You can't put excuses in life. You just got to—this is the playing field. This is what you got to do. It's about maximizing each and every person you have.
CJ: Todd Monken has praised your playmaking ability as one of his favorite parts of your game. What part of your game are you maybe most proud of having or maybe most proud of having developed so far?
SS: I would say I'm proud to having my mind to stay consistent. Throughout everything, I would say to be able to see out of different points of views and have a level of understanding from different perspectives.
CJ: We've seen you come out here early at practice, stay late at practice. We've seen those connections you talked about and the relationships that you've wanted to build. We're going to see you on the field on Saturday against the Bills. What haven't we seen that we should expect to see from Shedeur Sanders?
SS: I would say I don't think you've seen me with a free mind before. I think we got glimpses of it, but now that all the installs are in, now that we're understanding the lay of the land, understanding down and distance and all these different things that's way more important, I'd say at the NFL level, I'm on the right path to getting back to where I really, really need to be. So that's what I'm really excited about. That's why, even playing the Bears, I was excited. Of course, it's mistakes and stuff, but nobody can reenact the feeling that you have within. I think it's a good place to feel, a good place to be, and I'm going to get to where I need to get.
CJ: Are we expecting the free-minded Shedeur on Saturday?
SS: Yeah, for sure. Yeah, definitely.
