Browns’ Rodney Smith Reveals Why Shedeur Sanders Was Benched: ‘It Wasn’t About Talent’

The Cleveland Browns made a quarterback change ahead of Week 5, but Shedeur Sanders will remain the third-string quarterback.

Dillon Gabriel will start for the Browns when Cleveland takes on the Minnesota Vikings in England in Week 5. Joe Flacco, who was benched, will serve as the backup while Sanders remains inactive as the emergency third-string quarterback.

Given that Flacco has struggled, sports analyst Stephen A. Smith doesn’t understand why the Browns aren’t allowing Sanders to be the backup. But he believes it is due to political reasons.

“Why you got Joe Flacco at QB2 when you know it should be Shedeur Sanders?” Smith said. “See, this is the stuff that makes you think for a second and say you know what? Politics, politics, politics. Joe Flacco is a stopgap…

“Why are we acting like Shedeur Sanders doesn’t deserve to be QB2? Why are we acting like we aren’t going to be seeing this brother before the season is over? Unless Dillon Gabriel goes out there and plays lights out, you know the Cleveland Browns are going to insert Shedeur Sanders at some point. I think it’s going to be sooner rather than later, but I don’t think it’s going to be too late.”

Smith believes the Browns’ not making Sanders the backup is due to politics. However, Smith does agree with how Sanders has handled everything, including turning down the Baltimore Ravens to draft him.

But, Smith believes there is no reason why Flacco should be the backup over Sanders when the Browns need to find an answer at quarterback.

Browns Coach Names Flacco the Backup

Cleveland will be turning to Gabriel in Week 5, and Flacco will be the backup, coach Kevin Stefanski revealed.

“Yeah, Joe’s the backup,” Stefanski said.

With Flacco being the backup, Sanders will continue to be inactive as he waits to get into his first NFL game. As for Flacco, he says he plans to help mentor Gabriel and make sure he’s the most prepared he can be.

“I think the best way to help him is just continue to come to work, you know, with a good mindset every day and provide that positive energy and see what he needs on his end,” Flacco said… “Listen, he’s into it, man. He’s ready to go. I’m sure he’s super excited about this opportunity. You can tell he takes it seriously just by the way he studies and his intent in the meeting rooms and on the practice field.”

The Browns are 4.5-point underdogs against the Vikings in England on Sunday.

Offensive Coordinator Excited for Gabriel to Start

The Browns‘ offense has been struggling through four weeks, and the team has finally made a quarterback change.

Browns offensive coordinator Tommy Rees says he’s excited for Gabriel to start and believes the rookie is more than ready.

“Yeah, excited about the opportunity for Dillon (Gabriel), and obviously talking with Kevin (Stefanski) and throughout the week on it, felt like it was the right time for it,” Rees

said. “He’s put in a lot of work to put himself ready to play, so guys have rallied around him.

“We’ve all got to do our part to help elevate the play of the quarterback and get the quarterback playing well,” Rees added. So, I know Dillon’s been chomping at the bit, and Joe (Flacco) has been there every step of the way to help support him through this process and get him ready on this week here in London and getting ready to play Minnesota (Vikings).”

Gabriel has appeared in two games this season, going 3-for-4 for 19 yards and a touchdown.

Everything to Know About Lions vs Bengals: The official for this game has a bad past with the Lions, and more

The Detroit Lions are back on the road for their Week 5 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals. Here's everything you need to know about the game:

How To Watch Lions vs Bengals

When: Sunday, October 5th at 4:25 p.m. EST
Where: Paycor Stadium (Cincinnati, OH)
Broadcast: Fox
Streaming: You can stream the game live on YouTubeTV via NFL Sunday Ticket packages. You can also stream the game on the Fox Sports app by logging in through your TV provider.

Listen: Locally, you can listen to the game on 97.1 The Ticket. If you’re outside of the Detroit area, refer to the Lions radio map here.

Where you can watch Lions vs Bengals out of state (Broadcast Map)

Via A To Z Sports

If you live in the blue area, you'll be able to watch this game on your local Fox channel. Before Joe Burrow's injury, this was likely the game that was going to be shown all over the country. Now it's just in the area, and Fox is giving the rest of the country to the Chargers vs Commanders game.

Offcials for Lions vs Bengals

This one might scare you a little bit. Carl Cheffers and his crew are officiating this game. You might remember Cheffers as the guy who called the infamous phantom face mask on Devin Taylor at the end of the Lions vs Packers game. That set up the Rodgers Hail Mary touchdown that essentially booted the Lions out of playoff contention and killed thier season. They never recovered from that.

On top of that, Cheffers' crew is currently in the top three for most penalties called this season. So get ready to see a lot of laundry on the field for both teams.

Commentators for Lions vs Bengals

Play-by-Play: Kevin Kugler
Analyst: Daryl Johnston
Sideline: Allison Williams

Moon Stats for Lions vs Bengals

The Lions are playing the Bengals on a Waxing Gibbous moon. Detroit is 6-2 on this moon in the last two seasons, with the losses coming against the Green Bay Packers on Thanksgiving in 2023 and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 2 of the 2024 season.

History of Lions at Bengals

This will be the Lions' 14th matchup against the Bengals. They're 3-10 all-time against Cincinnati, with the last win coming in November of 1992. That was also the last time the Lions had won in Cincinnati. So a win there would end a 33-year streak.

Odds for Lions at Bengals

Line: Lions -10.5
Over/Under: 49.5

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