It has been a year since Shedeur Sanders stepped into the NFL, but he has yet to shake off the “arrogant” label he has been carrying since his college days. With a few weeks left before the 2026 season kicks off, the quarterback tried to mend things after showing his frustration during the previous press conference.

“First, I want to apologize for how things was last time I came up here before y’ll,” Sanders opened the presser before taking any questions on August 12. “I dislike when it’s a lot of separation. When something gets between the team and people get painted a certain way and all this different type of stuff. So that’s where I get frustrated, and I shut down.”

Regardless of how Sanders is performing in his still young career, the Year 2 quarterback has consistently been under the media’s glare. The press had a lot to write about Sanders’ rookie season, which began out of the blue after all other QBs in Cleveland failed. The writing and nitpicking continues into this season too, as he battles Deshaun Watson for the QB1 job.

Head coach Todd Monken, who has been very appreciative of Sanders’ growth this offseason, has named Watson the starter for the preseason game vs the Chicago Bears. When asked about the competition for the nth time, Sanders couldn’t restrain himself.

“Next question,” he said. “I answered this question 1,000 times.”

“I feel drained when I express myself to people and places and cameras when it’s not received and taken the right way, or like we’re trying to divide the team or anything like that,” he said in his apology. “That’s where I was trying to preserve my energy from going in depth with a lot of things.”

This is not the first time Shedeur Sanders drew flak for his conduct in the media. Last year, during an interview with ESPN Cleveland, the quarterback claimed he was “capable of doing better” than some current NFL starters. It did not sit well with ESPN analyst Rex Ryan. 

“This kid talks, and he runs his mouth,” he said. “Like he said, ‘I can be a starting quarterback’ with his arms crossed like this,” Ryan said. “Get your a– in the front row and study and do all that.”

This time, Shedeur chose not to carry the issue into the season and instead issued an apology. After all, the quarterback must be standing on loose sand. 

Analyst dropped a harsh prediction for Shedeur Sanders

Sanders will be starting the preseason game against the Buffalo Bills. However, for the regular-season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars, on September 13, the Browns are yet to pick their QB1. Amid the growing suspense, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport chose to stir the pot. 

“It certainly seems like Deshaun Watson has the leg up here. He’s the one who is more well-versed in the Browns’ operations,” he said on Inside Training Camp Live on August 9. “Shedeur has flashed in camp; he has made some plays that make them go, ‘OK, this guy’s got some talent.’ But just as far as dependability and play-in-play-out, it feels to me like Watson.”

Amid the theories doing the rounds, Shedeur was spotted with a taped finger during the training camp. An update soon followed from Hellion Boog Knight, Shedeur Sanders’ media manager, that the quarterback was dealing with a blister on his throwing hand.

This made fans wonder whether the injury bug returned after sidelining him during the Buffalo Bills game last season. The concerns are greater this time, since Sanders will be assessed during the preseason game. However, he dismissed the concerns.

“No that happened this past offseason getting back into it, just from throwing a lot,” Sanders said during the Wednesday presser. “And it’s all headed up now. Honestly, that’s where it came from. And it’s all headed up now. But that was a thing, I would say, at the start of training camp and everything that we just had to work through and be able to figure out.”

With the blister not affecting him anymore and the off-field issue addressed, it is now time to see what Shedeur can deliver on the gridiron.