Kevin Stefanski to Pull the Plug on Shedeur Sanders After New QB Signing, Says Browns Insider

All throughout July, the QB room in Cleveland had a competition. Now? It’s a free-for-all 6-way battle with no clear end goal in sight. Shedeur Sanders, drafted with a lineage intrigue and outrageous college stats, had spent his offseason vying for a higher spot on the Browns’ QB depth chart. Then came the curveballs. The Browns announced the signing of Tyler Huntley, a young journeyman QB with starting experience and a knack for filling in when chaos strikes starter plans. For Sanders, this latest move by his team adds to his summer of waiting and watching. But is this the beginning or something big, or is the door quietly closing on his NFL moment before it even properly opens?

For a QB room touted with talent and depth, HC Kevin Stefanski had a hard road to navigate the decision of QB1. For a brief moment, the picture looked clear. Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, and Dillion Gabriel, in the top 3 spots. And Sanders is bringing up the rear at QB4. But Gabriel and Pickett were suddenly nursing hamstring injuries, and Sanders had a sore arm that made him miss practice time. The solution? “Yeah, here comes Tyler Huntley,” radio host Ken Carman observed on 92.3 The Fan, laying out the challenge now facing Sanders and the Browns. And it was only the beginning.

Speaking about Huntley, Ken Carman added, “He’ll be able to get you through this preseason game just fine. And you got 90 spots, and you can keep the 90 spots until the end. So yeah, you miss one person, but you can only have one quarterback out there…” But for Carman, that one QB isn’t Sanders anymore. Joe Flacco has quietly asserted himself at the top with his experience and familiarity. And Sanders, with his arm soreness, will not be getting as much time on the field as people had originally hoped. Carman’s verdict went: “You’re not gonna put him out there like that. Especially because he says he has arm soreness, so I’m not gonna have him out there playing a whole 60-minute football game, having to go through it. It will get him to a whole half, I think, and then it would be him and Tyler Huntley.”

Sanders, drafted on upside, shadowed by expectation, is now admittedly “a little further behind” then the rest of the QBs. Any missed practice, any turnover, any every new addition matters just a little more. The QB room is 6 deep (if you include Deshaun Watson reeling from last season’s injuries) at the moment. Sanders is still QB4. Huntley’s arrival isn’t an indictment, but it does reveal the Browns’ wariness and commitment to options. As the team travels for the joint practice with the Panthers on August 6, the stakes are now higher for Sanders than ever before. Carman firmly believes Sanders isn’t out of the running in Cleveland. It’s a nuanced message. An invitation for Sanders to seize the moment, but a warning that nothing is guaranteed. Especially as Huntley brings with him tried, tested upsides, and a whole lot of competition.

Tyler Huntley’s signing: the drama intensifies

When Tyler Huntley walked into the facility, the move spoke volumes. The Browns are tired of last year’s QB shuffle. Deshaun Watson’s injuries, the carousel of backups, the sense of what-might-have-been in a season defined by ‘if only,’ have all added up to this moment. Huntley, who came within a whisker of playoff glory with the Ravens, is the new insurance. He brings “many, many offenses” of experience and capability to get the team “through the preseason game just fine.” With Flacco as the only other healthy QB on the roster at the moment, the first preseason game against the Panthers could be shared by Huntley and Sanders. With his experience, Huntley has the edge right now. 

Huntley played legitimate snaps for Baltimore, earning trust as a fill-in for Lamar Jackson. In that time, he flashed both poise and mobility. He is, in short, everything teams want from a backup: savvy, unafraid, and ready to take over at a moment’s notice. Huntley also has a little history with the Browns. He notably spent a chunk of last offseason with the team before moving to Miami. Kevin Stefanski has grown accustomed to managing injuries, and understands the stakes moving forward. “Injuries are a part of this game. They’re frustrating from the standpoint of when you lose a guy for a good amount of time you feel, that’s tough on the players. But dealing with injuries, adjusting because injuries, that’s just part of the game.” Where does that leave Shedeur Sanders? The joint practice on August 6 feels heavier now for the rookie. His performance there might just seal his preseason fate. 

As the first preseason matchup against the Panthers approaches, the stakes are crystallizing. For Sanders, it’s not about being pulled, but about pushing forward. It’s about forcing coaches to reconsider old plans and deep-seated doubts. Will Shedeur Sanders step up and rewrite the script? Or will Tyler Huntley’s veteran cool keep another hopeful on the bench? For now, all eyes in Charlotte will be on every throw, every read, and every recovery, waiting for an answer.