Shedeur Sanders is dealing with an unexpected back injury, which prompted the Cleveland Browns to elevate practice squad quarterback Bailey Zappe for Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots.
Sanders was not listed on the injury report all week but was dubbed questionable on Saturday with the back issue. Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot said, “Sanders’ back tightened up overnight, and he alerted the Browns to it on Saturday morning.”
Sanders’ sudden injury sparked rumors that a trade involving Sanders could be imminent ahead of the Nov. 4 deadline.
“I call BS… HE’S GETTING TRADED, and they’re not messing up that TRADE Value! Free Shedeur. NYC wants him,” one fan said.
“This tells me Kevin Stefanski fully expects Dillon Gabriel to play like (expletive) against the Pats and doesn’t want to field questions as to why he didn’t turn to Shedeur in a blowout loss, or a trade for Shedeur is imminent,” another added.
“Mystery back injury for Shedeur 10 days before the trade deadline?” a fan said with eyeball emojis.
Browns Not Looking to Trade Shedeur Sanders
Despite the rampant speculation surrounding the situation, Sanders’ injury is real, and the Browns have no plans to trade him, per Mary Kay Cabot.
“The soreness is legitimate, and the Browns have no plans to trade Sanders, even though he’s not getting any first-team reps in practice, and might not see the field for a while,” Cabot said. “As for any set schedule for when Sanders will play, the Browns don’t have one. They’ll let it unfold, with some of it depending on the performance of the offense, and some on Sanders’ development.”
But even if Sanders is available on Sunday, he could be listed as the emergency third quarterback, with Zappe active. The rules stipulate that the emergency QB must be on the active roster. And since Zappe was elevated from the practice squad, he’s ineligible for that designation, per Zac Jackson of The Athletic. Sanders would only enter the game if both Gabriel and Zappe are injured and unable to continue.
The Browns also elevated defensive tackle Sam Kamara for the Week 8 matchup.
Browns QB Dillon Gabriel Under Pressure to Produce
The situation with Sanders comes at a very interesting time. He’s been linked in trade rumors, but there’s also been speculation that the Browns could turn to Sanders if Gabriel continues to struggle.
Gabriel is 1-2 as the Browns’ starter and has not provided much of a spark for the offense. He’s coming off a 116-yard performance in a 31-6 win in wet conditions. Through three starts, he’s passed for 546 yards and three touchdowns, but his 5.1 yards per attempt is among the worst in the NFL.
Cabot laid out that if Gabriel continues to be a game manager rather than a game changer, it could lead the Browns to want to get a look at Sanders sooner than expected.
“The Browns definitely want to see more points from Gabriel and the offense, and don’t have him on a short leash. But the passing game does need to improve, or they’ll undoubtedly find themselves tempted to turn to Sanders sooner than perhaps they want to,” Cabot said.
