Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders has been the standout in a jam-packed QB room all offseason. Yes, we’re talking OTAs, mandatory minicamp, and training camp. But now, with the regular season barely three weeks out, he’s managed to stand out in another category… injuries. Odd? Sure. True? Unfortunately. While Kenny Pickett and Dillon Gabriel are recovering from their respective hamstring injuries, Shedeur has sustained another injury in a span of a couple of weeks.

First came a sore arm that kept him off the field for part of practice. Fast forward to Wednesday’s joint session with the Eagles, and Kevin Stefanski and Co. confirmed the Colorado Buffaloes product has picked up an oblique injury. “Shedeur Sanders injured his oblique throwing early in practice on Wednesday, and was held out the remainder of practice,” the Browns broke the news on X.

The quarterback held the rest of the practice, sure. But many expected him to return on Thursday. But there has been a wrinkle. On Thursday, August 14, Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com broke the concerning news. “QB Shedeur Sanders in uniform but not practicing today bc of oblique,” she wrote on X. Well, it was expected. Given that he’s in uniform and not practicing, we can assume the Browns are not risking further complications for Shedeur’s oblique injury.

As per The Athletic, the Cleveland team said Sanders is day-to-day and won’t be able to participate in any team drills on Thursday. To make it worse, he’s now unlikely to start in the Preseason Week 2 showdown against the reigning Super Bowl champs. Shedeur’s injury came after the rookie turned heads in the preseason opener against the Panthers earlier this month.

Considering Pickett and Gabriel are rehabbing, and Joe Flacco wasn’t expected to show up due to precautionary measures, Sanders started against the Carolina team. The quarterback finished with 14-of-23 for 138 yards and racked up a couple of touchdowns. “Two ways you could look at it. You could look at it and be thankful and take full advantage of the opportunity,” Sanders said.

He went on, “Or you could look at it like, ‘Dang, guess what I’ve been asking for (and) I’m not prepared.’ So I would say I’ve been able to sleep good at night knowing I was playing. I didn’t know I was playing until (just a few days ago), then I just prepared (for) it as normal.” That said, and as the Browns confirmed that Shedeur Sanders is not practicing on Thursday, it’s now unlikely for him to start against the Eagles.

Is Shedeur Sanders in Kevin Stefanski’s plans?

Social media lit up when Shedeur Sanders torched the Panthers in the preseason opener this month. And one could argue that he’s a confirmed starter for the Preseason Week 2 game, and rightfully so. After all, Kevin Stefanski himself confirmed it. “Yeah, I guess if those guys could not play, yes, and we’re working through that,” he said when asked if Shedeur would start if Dillon Gabriel is unable to.

“We were always going to play our young guys a lot in these games. So, we’ll see how it shakes out here over the next couple of days,” the HC added. But there’s an unexpected change in the narrative. Shedeur is down with an oblique injury and is unlikely to play against the Eagles. So, the actual question emerges: who’ll start now? Well, odds are in favor of Shedeur’s fellow rookie QB: Gabriel.

If the chatter carries any weight, Stefanski has confirmed Gabriel as the Preseason Week 2 starter. But as long as his hamstring injury allows him to. “Again, the plan was always to give both of those guys a start in the preseason so we’ll see how it shakes out,” Stefanski hinted. As for Gabriel, the rookie shrugged things off and revealed that he has no clue if he’s going to start.

“I have no clue what’s going to happen. I’m just right where my feet are,” he said. “Time will tell and we’ll see what happens. But it’s up to the coaches.” Gabriel has been suffering from a hamstring injury for some days now, sure. But given that he has been participating in 11-on-11 since Monday, expect him to replace Shedeur Sanders against the Eagles. And Sanders? We’ll see how soon he recovers