One of the biggest moments the Dawg Pound has been waiting for since the offseason came at last. Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski announced that rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders will get his first regular-season start in Week 12 against the Las Vegas Raiders. But is Deion Sanders going to be there to watch his son’s big game?

“Quite honestly, right now, I don’t know,” Shedeur said when asked about it. “I’m so focused on what I’m doing. I don’t even be talking to too many people right now.”

When asked about it further, Shedeur admitted he hadn’t talked to Deion yet. But he did speak to his brother, Shilo Sanders. And the young quarterback invited everyone to see him in action.

“Shilo called me, but I said, ‘Bro, right now if you want to talk, everybody just fly in, come see me,’” Shedeur shared. “I ain’t trying to be on my phone. … If you want to talk, just pull up on me, and then we can talk from there.”

Shedeur also noted that he is trying to stay away from his phone. There’s a lot of people trying to check up on him after his house got robbed on Sunday, November 16. Reportedly, the robbers took approximately $200,000 worth of property from his house. But in the face of his first NFL start, Shedeur remained cheerful, adding, “Too many people be texting me, ‘Are you okay?’ Yes. I’m fine. I didn’t get robbed; my house did.”

It’s understandable why Shedeur feels this way. He rejected other teams in the draft because he didn’t want to be the backup. For a while, it looked like the same fate awaited him behind a crowded quarterback room in Cleveland. But the crowd has thinned out, and with Dillon Gabriel navigating the concussion protocol, Sanders has the chance to make a splash.

So, Shedeur now gets ready for Week 12 with the first-team reps he had never gotten until now. He has time to work out how his receivers run routes, and the team has the time to understand his cadence, which was a problem in Week 11. And most of all, he’s now ready to try to match the expectations set ahead for him.

Shedeur Sanders excited to prove himself

The Browns have been hungry for wins. Their defense does wonders every week, and every week the offense struggles to score points. Joe Flacco couldn’t do it, and got shipped to Cincinnati. So far into the season, Dillon Gabriel has also struggled to spark the offense. But if Shedeur Sanders can outperform them and bring home a spectacular win against the Raiders, we might just see him under center beyond Week 12 as well. And he appears ready to shoulder that pressure.

“I have to take that upon myself to know that I have the responsibility to bring this team a win on our side of the ball,” Sanders noted. “So, I gotta do what’s necessary to do that.”

And after months of the Dawg Pound demanding Shedeur becomes the starter, he’s also issued a statement to the fanbase.

“I know our fans have a lot of expectations and hope. I would be doing a disservice to myself and disservice to the organization if I didn’t feel like I am the guy,” Sanders added. “I’m doing everything I need to to prepare to be the best version of myself as possible. With the circumstances, everything got to be sped up and that’s great. I like pressure in life. I’m just excited for everything.”

The drive is there. You can also gauge his excitement by the smile Shedeur has on his face throughout the interview. Kevin Stefanski is adjusting the offense to fit Sanders best. All that remains now is to show up and show out against the Raiders on Sunday, November 24. If he has done enough by then, we might just see a rewrite in the Browns’ quarterback script once again.