One of the biggest moments the Dawg Pound has been waiting for since the offseason has finally arrived. 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,” Sanders 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 Sanders 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,’” Sanders 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.”

Sanders also noted that he is trying to stay away from his phone. There are a lot of people trying to check up on him after his house was robbed on Sunday, November 16. Reportedly, the robbers took approximately $200,000 worth of property (according to the Medina County Sheriff’s Office) 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 Sanders feels this way. Earlier reports said he turned down certain teams in the draft because he did not want to be a 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.

With Gabriel in the concussion protocol, Bailey Zappe is expected to serve as the team’s backup for Week 12. In relief of Gabriel in Week 11, Sanders completed 4 of 16 passes for 47 yards with one interception and was sacked twice.

Sanders will take the first-team reps this week after having received limited first-team work previously. 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 is clearly eager 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.”

After months of calls from the Dawg Pound for Sanders to start, he issued a message to the fanbase:

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“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 Sanders 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 23, 2025 (1:05 PM PT / 4:05 PM ET). If he performs well Sunday, he could put himself in the conversation to remain the starter beyond Week 12.