Ex-Browns Player Calls Shedeur Sanders a Distraction - Cleveland’s Locker Room Faces New Test

The Cleveland Browns took a flier on Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL Draft after he had a goal of being picked in the first round.

Sanders had plenty of hype entering the draft, and many thought he would be a future starting quarterback. Yet, he hasn’t gotten the chance to start this season, and it has created plenty of noise around Cleveland.

Many fans have called for Sanders to start, and all the outside noise is causing a distraction, according to former Browns star and Super Bowl champ Mitchell Schwartz.

“Teams don’t like having guys who aren’t necessarily playing or earning the right to be talked about that much or to be asked about that much,” Schwartz said to Casino.org.

“It can cause a bit of distraction. It’s those situations when you’re an offensive lineman for example, suddenly you’re getting interviewed on a Thursday after a long practice, and they’re asking you about the third string quarterback.

“To you, that’s annoying. It’s not something you want to talk about. It’s not something you feel like you need to address or discuss. That’s what a distraction feels like. You don’t want to go in the locker room or be around the reporters because you’re going to be asked about it.”

Schwartz played for the Browns from 2012 until 2015 before signing with the Kansas City Chiefs. The offensive tackle believes all the noise around Sanders isn’t good for the locker room, which could be why he hasn’t started.

Schwartz Gives Sanders Advice

Part of the reason why Schwartz believes Sanders has become a distraction is due to all the media attention he wants.

The former offensive lineman thinks Sanders brings a lot of attention. He believes Sanderse seeks it out, which a third-string and backup quarterback shouldn’t.

“So when you are the backup or the third string and you bring that into an organization,” Schwartz added. “You could say he’s asked for a lot of it based on marketing himself the way he has. The way his father has. Putting himself out there. Having the videos and the shows and the endorsements.

I don’t think you could say that he doesn’t want the attention.

“He clearly does and clearly likes it. He likes the money he earned in college, and the money he’s earning from it now.

It’s just in the NFL, that only flies so much if you’re not producing on the field. We’ll see if he gets his chance. I think he, based on what we’ve seen in the last few weeks out of Gabriel, will get that chance. And we’ll see what he can do with it. Hopefully, he’s prepared.”

It’s a bold take from Schwartz. The former Browns star believes Sanders should just quiet down and put in the work and not bring all the attention to him as the backup.

Browns Sticking With Dillon Gabriel at Quarterback

Although Gabriel and the Browns’ offense have struggled, Cleveland is sticking with the rookie at quarterback.

After the Browns’ disappointing loss to the New York Jets, head coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed Gabriel will remain the starter.

“We’re going to stick with Dillon. Obviously, young players that you’re always trying to get one game better,” Stefanski said of his third-round pick. “We have to play better as an offense. We have to coach better. All of the above.”

The Browns will host the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

Titans HC Urges Cam Ward to ‘Trust the Process’ Amid Struggles

The Tennessee Titans, looking, at this point, for any remotely positive takeaway from their down-and-out season, are coming off what was a much-needed bye week for that very reason. Having lost three straight games after firing former head coach Brian Callahan — and one prior to his dismissal — the team finds themselves with a 1-8 record and, if they can't top the Houston Texans at home this coming weekend, they'll remain winless in the AFC South.

Improving Over Break

For those reasons and many more, the Titans extra seven days off felt like a win within itself. The team, under interim HC Mike McCoy, continued to work during the time to shake their allergy to winning football games, addressing specific issues on either side of the ball.

The team's offense has specifically been dire this season, and much of the blame, whether it should or not, falls on rookie quarterback Cam Ward. At the general midway point of his first season, Ward has turned the ball over more times than he's scored it, ultimately yielding negative results despite the positive flashes he's managed on occasion. Speaking to the media at the start of the team's back-on-track game week, McCoy noted a string of advice for the first overall pick.

"Here are some things you can look at from my perspective," said McCoy, citing multiple key aspects of play on the offensive end, as a former senior assistant for the team, that Ward can work on. "There's a number of things I I talked to him about. … There's constant communication. And the great thing about Cam is he wants to be great, and he wants that input on a daily basis."

Desire to Be Great

Even at Ward's absolute worst on the field, the young QB hasn't once been doubted for his optimism and honesty off the field, in equal parts. He appears to be every bit of the sort of leader that a rebuilding team would want at their core; given a refreshed offensive line and enhanced arsenal of playmaking weapons, he has the potential to flourish into something truly special under center.

For the time being, though, Ward and the rest of his team are stuck in a sort of limbo as the franchise floats along without a tenured leader. Unless the team rallies behind McCoy all the sudden — or his advice to Ward lights an unexpected spark in the signal caller — their current state will likely prevail into the offseason.

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