Sanders shines in the first half vs. the Bills

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Shedeur Sanders had to wait out a one-hour, four-minute lightning delay in his big start against the Bills on Saturday, but he managed to create some sparks in his last chance to show Todd Monken that he deserves to beat out Deshaun Watson for the starting job.Watson, meanwhile, was booed again by the home crowd in his return to Huntington Bank Field for the first time since Oct. 20, 2024, when some fans cheered while he was down on the field with a ruptured Achilles. He was booed throughout the third quarter of the 31-7 loss, on his first two three-and-outs, and again when he threw an interception.Now, Monken will huddle up with his staff and try to determine which one of them gives the Browns the best chance to win. He indicated on the Browns radio network before the game that he’ll make a decision on his QB1 early in the week.Mike Hall Jr. flashes at edge, but Browns’ defensive depth continues being tested: Ashley BastockOne thing is clear from Browns preseason game vs. Bills: End this QB competition and move forward — Dan LabbeBrowns receiver leaves game against Bills for concussion check, clears protocolSanders, in four series of work in the first half, went 9 of 11 for 74 yards, with one touchdown pass and one interception for an 87.1 rating. He was sacked once and ran once for 2 yards. The pick was a pass thrown slightly behind tight end Jermaine Terry that went off his hands and into those of Bills safety Damar Hamlin. “It felt great to be back in the stadium,” Sanders told the NewsChannel 5 telecast. “It felt great to be able to put on a show for the time I had out there.”Watson, in four series in the third quarter and into the fourth, went 5 of 12 for 35 yards with no touchdowns and one interception for a 14.6 rating. His interception was an ill-advised low pass over the middle to Gage Larvadain into double-coverage.On his fourth and final drive, when his pass to Floriea was tipped and fell incomplete, loud boos rang out. Sanders condemned the booing of Watson.“I don’t like when the whole stadium is booing,” he said. “I don’t respect that. When somebody is trying to go out and do his best, it’s something I don’t really like.” Despite Sanders’ pick, the Browns were pleased with his productive outing, which came on the heels of a solid effort during the joint practice against the Bills on Thursday. “Really pleased with Shedeur,” Browns GM Andrew Berry said on the telecast. “I think everyone can see how well he threw the ball, he played with poise, he played with command of the offense. You could see his playmaking. That fourth-down throw to Blake Whiteheart and then we got a holding penalty on the scramble that he overcame with a nice throw to Luke Floriea.“I actually think the piece in his game where he’s growing the most that maybe goes a little bit understated is we hear about operation or cadence and using that as a weapon. And you think back to the first half, the two backed up situations where he gives us a free five yards using his hard count to give us a free play, really pleased with what we saw.”The Browns have also been pleased this preseason with Watson, who proved to Monken against the Bears last week that he can still play winning ball. By the time he got into the game in the third quarter, the Browns were down to third- and fourth-teamers, but Sanders had more success throwing to the same backups. “I think the number one thing with Deshaun you can tell how hard he’s worked to get himself back physically,” Berry said. “You can see that with his mobility, you can see that with his arm. And the second part of it is you can see with each passing week how much more comfort he’s getting with the game and the speed of the game. I think you saw that particularly last week with Chicago. And he’s really just worked his tail off to get back and play at that level.”Sanders also noted that while he and Watson are competing for the job, they’ve been supportive of each other. “We’re in competition of our ability and what we can do,” he said, “not in real life.”After the long lightning delay, Sanders warmed back up and answered the Bills’ touchdown on their opening drive with one of his own on the Browns’ first possession for a 7-7 tie with 2:56 left in the first quarter. He went 4-for-4 for 43 yards on the drive, capping it with an 8-yard TD pass to Luke Floriea on a dig route just to the left of the post off the motion. Sanders also converted a fourth and 2 on the drive with a 16-yard strike to tight end Blake Whiteheart to the right after Sanders, under pressure, shifts to his right. Sanders also ran 2 yards on the nine-play, 75-yard march after a play fake.Sanders’ second drive started at his own 7 after a holding call by the Browns on the punt return, and he couldn’t move it past his own 23 despite a neutral zone infraction by the Bills. Sanders was also sacked for 0 yards on the drive, and it fizzled when his pass to Raheim Sanders on third down went for 2 yards. His third possession got out to a great start, with a 13-yard completion to tight end Carsen Ryan down the right side after a fake pitch. A few plays later, TJ Parker grabbed Sanders around the neck, but guard Zak Zinter was flagged for holding on the play to bring up third and 15. Undaunted, Sanders found Floriea for 23 yards on a crossing route to the Bills 28. But on second down from the Bills’ 19, Sanders threw slightly behind Terry down the left side, where the ball bounced off of his hands and into those of Bills safety Damar Hamlin. Sanders had gone 8 for 8 for 80 yards before the pick, showing good poise, accuracy and decision-making. Sanders got the two-minute drill at the end of the half that Todd Monken was hoping for, but wasn’t able to break the 7-7 tie. Starting at his own 17 with 1:48 left, Sanders went three-and-out, beginning with a short checkdown to the right to running back Davon Booth for a 6-yard loss. Booth got 4 yards of it back on a run around right end on the next play, and the Bills were flagged for offside to move Cleveland to the 20. But Sanders threw incomplete over the middle for Booth on third and 7, and a holding penalty on Dawand Jones was declined to force a punt. The Bills came back out with 1:02 left, and Kyle Allen threw a touchdown pass to Mecole Hardman with 15 seconds left to put the Bills up 14-7. The key play on the drive was a 37-yard pass to Ja’Mori Maclin. Sanders’ No. 1 trait that has enabled him to remain in the QB battle this long is his elite playmaking ability. It’s been on display all camp, with splash plays to the likes of Denzel Boston, KC Concepcion, Isaiah Bond, Jerry Jeudy and others. Sanders has also protected the ball extremely well in camp, throwing only five interceptions compared to 12 for Watson. But Sanders did throw a pick in his third and final series last week in Chicago, on a pass intended for Malachi Corley.The key for Sanders throughout camp has been to demonstrate that he can manage the game effectively from a pre-snap standpoint, getting in and out of the huddle, sliding the protections, managing the motions and changing the plays. On Saturday, he handled the operation extremely well. “Today was a really good day,” he said. He admitted with a laugh that he messed up before the game, forgetting that he was supposed to go out for the coin toss, and that he won’t let it happen again. From a post-snap standpoint, he must not retreat under pressure and take negative plays. He’s improved tremendously in that regard, but must continue to flash through his progressions and release the ball quicker. He’s gotten better at taking the checkdown and living to see another play, but he’ll fare better when the game slows down for him in the new scheme. “Well, he’s improved so much,” Monken said the day after the Bears game. “I mean, he really has in terms of climbing the pocket, working through his progressions. I think that’s a big thing. Even on the one that he threw to 81 (Luke Floriea) in the slot, he drifted too deep. I mean, we caught them in the blitz, but they weren’t even close. Created kind of his own pressure. And then the operation. It’s still a part of it. “Getting in the huddle, getting lined up, getting the call. So does Deshaun … So how can we play cleaner at all positions? And certainly with him, how can he play cleaner?” The signs have pointed recently to Watson getting the nod, but Saturday was the perfect time for Sanders to prove the job should go to him.