BEREA, Ohio – Shedeur Sanders succeeded in being the last player off the practice field at Browns rookie minicamp on Friday.
Sanders – the Colorado quarterback whose multi-day slide to the fifth round was the most-dissected storyline of the 2025 NFL Draft – walked-and-talked with Jabre Barber – an undrafted rookie receiver from Texas A&M. Sanders gave Miami, Ohio receiver Cade McDonald – another undrafted rookie, a high-five. Sanders handed his "12" jersey to trainers and walked into the training room, while a few photographers snapped pictures.
That was the extent of the drama on a clear, windy first day of minicamp at the CrossCountry Mortgage Campus of the Cleveland Browns.
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How quiet was it? You could hear the wind crash into flagpoles beside the practice facility. This was not what you would expect. Colorado coach Deion Sanders was not in attendance. It's not a media circus quite yet, perhaps by clever design. It's rookie minicamp, after all.
It's subtle – but in the short term Sanders is the main attraction among a group of rookies that includes quarterback Dillon Gabriel, a third-round pick. Gabriel took the first rep in the team portion, and that was among the first questions for Cleveland coach Kevin Stefanski afterward.
"I wouldn't look into anything," Stefanski said. "You'll see the whole weekend, going through the spring, we don't pay too close attention to (the first rep)."
A few questions later, there was another variation of that same question.
"This will fall on deaf ears but don't look into it," Stefanski said. "There's plenty of reps. There is a lot of time between now and September. We'll have a plan, but it's an all-encompassing evaluation."
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Shedeur Sanders vs. Dillon Gabriel
This is the loud part. The competition between Gabriel and Sanders – which will likely be for one of the backup QB spots – is one of the most interesting storylines of the upcoming preseason. Gabriel – a third-round pick at No. 94 – has played six seasons through UCF, Oklahoma and Oregon. Sanders – a fifth-round pick at No. 144 – is getting the media attention – and first-round pick Mason Graham was asked if that is overshadowing him.
"That doesn't really matter to me," Graham said. "I came to play football. If the media is on me, then they're on me. If the media is not, then they're not."
They'll be on Sanders and Gabriel when the quarterbacks are made available to the media Saturday.
How will they fit in Cleveland's latest attempt at a QB room? Deshaun Watson – who has two years left on a five-year, $230 million contract – likely will miss a significant portion of the season while recovering from a second Achilles' tendon tear. Joe Flacco, 40, is back after leading the Browns to the AFC wild card in 2023. Kenny Pickett – acquired from the Eagles for a fifth-round pick – is on his third team in four years. Is that hope?
Sanders and Gabriel had their moments on the first day of drills. Gabriel escaped a sack when the pocket collapsed in a team drill and showed the mobility that makes him an interesting prospect.
Sanders looked sharp in the red-zone 7-on-7 drill. He closed the session with a TD pass to Ja'Sheen Reed, yet another undrafted receiver from San Diego. This is how Sanders will have to prove himself early.
MORE: Video of Shedeur Sanders at Day 1 of Browns rookie camp
Both QBs worked with tight end Harold Fannin Jr. – a third-round pick from Bowling Green who had 117 catches for 1,555 yards and 10 TDs last season. Fannin is happy both QBs were in the Browns' draft class.
"I think they're going to be great," Fannin said. "I think it's going to be dope and I'm glad that they are here."
A DOT from Shedeur Sanders in 7-on-7 work 🎯 pic.twitter.com/GzN8kB8Bal
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) May 9, 2025
There is new hope with the new quarterbacks – and this is the first time rookies have generated it under Stefanski. The Browns are coming off a 3-14 season.
What is hope? The previous versions read like "Jeopardy!" clues gone wrong.
In 2014, Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel arrived in Cleveland after being selected with the No. 22 pick with the promise to "wreck this league."
Manziel played in 14 games and was 2-6 as a starter in two seasons.
Then there was Baker Mayfield, who arrived as the No. 1 pick in 2018 after the Browns finished 0-16 the previous season. Mayfield was a hit, "dangerous" became the most-used adjective in Cleveland and the Browns made a run to the AFC divisional playoffs in 2020.
Mayfield, however, fell out of favor in Cleveland and was traded to the Panthers after four seasons.
Cleveland tried Cody Kessler with a third-round pick in 2016 and DeShone Kizer in 2017 – moves that generated varying levels of curiosity in rookie minicamp. The only quarterback drafted during Stefanski's reign is Dorian Thompson-Robinson, a fifth-round pick in 2023.
There isn't a catch-phrase to describe Cleveland's next starting quarterback either, but we will know what it will be if Sanders factors in. Will "Legendary" make a comeback? For those looking for drama, this wasn't the day for that. For Stefanski this was the expected part.
"The fun part is we spent so much pre-draft time with these players, particularly when you are talking about our quarterbacks with Dillon and Shedeur, meeting time with them and walk throughs — they get to go do it in uniform with helmets on," Stefanski said. "Then, just what they can take from the meeting room to the grass. I thought both guys did a nice job."
The drama will start if Sanders forces Stefanski's hand on the field. There were reminders. A car drove past the facility and a fan screamed something intelligible with the exception of "Shedeur." Sanders and Gabriel will be back Saturday for Day 2. Stefanski held the line, but he was asked if the idea is to keep the reps even – no matter who takes that first snap.
"That's fair," Stefanski said. "Certainly for this camp, that's the idea to split the reps."
SHEDEUR SANDERS NFL DRAFT SLIDE:
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- Comparing Browns rookie QB's Dillon Gabriel & Shedeur Sanders
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- Shedeur Sanders' wild post-draft celebration