{"id":36753,"date":"2025-10-29T23:44:58","date_gmt":"2025-10-29T23:44:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=36753"},"modified":"2025-10-29T23:44:58","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T23:44:58","slug":"browns-unexpected-qb-wrinkle-could-be-bad-news-for-shedeur-sanders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=36753","title":{"rendered":"Browns Unexpected QB &#8216;Wrinkle&#8217; Could Be Bad News for Shedeur Sanders"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2242022740-3-e1761778006452.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2242022740-3-e1761778006452.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2242022740-3-e1761778006452.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2242022740-3-e1761778006452.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Browns Unexpected QB 'Wrinkle' Could Be Bad News for Shedeur Sanders\" width=\"780\" height=\"439\" \/><\/figure>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Much has been made about the Cleveland Browns quarterback situation and the potential of Shedeur Sanders replacing Dillon Gabriel as the starting quarterback for the 2-6 squad.<\/p>\n<p>However, Ashley Bastock of cleveland.com could see practice squad Bailey Zappe and Deshaun Watson as complicating \u201cwrinkles\u201d in Cleveland\u2019s eternally messy quarterback situation.<\/p>\n<p>The Browns signed Zappe ahead of the season and he\u2019s been on the practice squad. He was active last week as the backup in place of an injured Sanders. Zappe spent time with the Browns last season and started the meaningless season finale.<\/p>\n<p>Watson is recovering from a twice-ruptured Achilles and is on the PUP list. He\u2019s expected to be evaluated during the bye week, and the Browns will have to make a decision on whether or not to open his 21-day window for a return.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think there is another wrinkle that could happen. There are two other guys in that room,\u201d Bastock said on 92.3 The Fan. I know no one wants to have the Deshaun Watson conversation but what if we come back from this bye week and they\u2019re talking about opening his practice window? The reality is, they didn\u2019t shut Deshaun Watson down for the entire year.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBailey Zappe is there. He\u2019s started a football game for them. Shedeur is the backup quarterback when healthy, but you can never say never with this team and their quarterbacks, especially with two other veteran guys \u2014 that\u2019s something to keep in mind, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Browns QB Shedeur Sanders Dealing With Back Injury<\/h2>\n<p>As the depth chart is currently constructed, Sanders would be the next logical option for the Browns if Gabriel continues to struggle. Through four starts, Gabriel is 1-3 and has passed for 702 yards, five touchdowns, and two interceptions. What\u2019s been concerning about Gabriel\u2019s play is his lack of playmaking ability, averaging just 4.9 yards per attempt.<\/p>\n<p>An unexpected factor for Sanders was a sudden back injury he suffered ahead of Week 8. He tested it pregame but the Browns decided to hold Sanders out. The fifth-round pick has made it clear that it wasn\u2019t his decision not to suit up.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe obviously came in Saturday with his back injury. We were hopeful that he\u2019d be able to move around well enough to suit up on Sunday. But, put him through a pre-game warm up, and obviously just didn\u2019t feel like he was ready to play,\u201d Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said. \u201cBut he\u2019s getting better every day and I\u2019m hopeful that he\u2019ll continue to improve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Stefanski also said that his \u201cfocus\u201d is not on Sanders starting when the team comes out of the bye week for a Week 10 matchup against the New York Jets.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Browns QB Deshaun Watson Eager to Prove Doubters Wrong<\/h2>\n<p>Watson\u2019s stay in Cleveland has been a disaster. Since arriving in 2022 via a blockbuster trade, Watson has a 9-10 record as the starter, passing for 3,365 yards, 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. Even when healthy, Watson has not looked nearly as good as the Pro Bowl talent he was with the Houston Texans.<\/p>\n<p>The Browns have been forced to navigate the consequences of the trade, which included signing Watson to a fully guaranteed $230 million contract. Owner Jimmy Haslam called it a \u201cswing and miss,\u201d signaling how the team feels about Watson being a part of their future at the position.<\/p>\n<p>However, Watson is still eager to return and prove his doubters wrong.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEveryone is doubting me \u2014 everyone don\u2019t believe in me,\u201d Watson said in a social media video documenting his return. \u201cEveryone don\u2019t think I can get back to where I was. But I know, and I believe the work that I put in, that I believe in myself\u2026 I know, I\u2019m gonna be way better than before.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The odds are stacked against Watson. His performance was already declining before the severe injury that has sidelined him for more than a year. It\u2019s unlikely he\u2019ll factor into the quarterback decision in Cleveland. But never say never, especially with the Browns.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Browns quarterback situation could take an unexpected turn, which is bad news for Shedeur Sanders.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":36754,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36753","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cleveland-browns"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Browns Unexpected QB &#039;Wrinkle&#039; Could Be Bad News for Shedeur Sanders - Breaking News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=36753\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Browns Unexpected QB &#039;Wrinkle&#039; 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