Cleveland Browns fans and other members of the football community were understandably excited to learn that rookie Shedeur Sanders will serve as the Browns’ starting quarterback for their preseason opener at the Carolina Panthers on Friday night. 

During the latest edition of the “Orange and Brown Talk Podcast,” Dan Labbe and Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer sent somewhat of a warning to those who are hoping that Sanders could bolster his odds of emerging as the Browns’ Week 1 starter with an impressive showing versus Carolina. 

“I’ve always believed with this (Browns) regime…what happens in preseason games kind of goes over here in this bucket. But what they really care about is joint practices, what happens in practices. All of that stuff,” Labbe said.

Cabot noted that Sanders “worked with the backups” during the Browns’ joint practice with the Panthers on Wednesday. That indicates the 2025 fifth-round draft pick remains Cleveland’s fourth-choice option at quarterback heading into the Carolina game.

Sanders is starting against the Panthers only because 2025 third-round draft pick Dillon Gabriel and presumed backup Kenny Pickett are working to fully recover from hamstring injuries they picked up during training camp. Meanwhile, outlets such as FanDuel Sportsbook continued to list veteran Joe Flacco as the betting favorite (-220 odds) to start Cleveland’s Week 1 game against the Cincinnati Bengals as of Thursday morning. To compare, Sanders was at +2500 odds to get the nod for the Bengals matchup. 

“Here’s why everyone needs to remember these are preseason games,” Cabot continued. “You are not getting game-planned for. Nobody’s trying to find your weaknesses. Nobody’s trying to make you do something that you can’t do very well at all. That’s not what happens in these games. …And that is why preseason, even the games, can be such a mirage. And you have to be so careful with what you think you’re seeing and what you think you know.” 

A Thursday report shared that those running the Browns don’t yet believe Sanders is “ready to lead a franchise” and instead view the former Colorado star as “a fifth-round rookie and the fourth quarterback on their depth chart.” It sounds like that won’t change regardless of how Sanders performs at Carolina’s Bank of America Stadium.