Browns coach Kevin Stefanski under fire for Shedeur Sanders “snub” after Raiders win

Shedeur Sanders marked his first NFL start in style, leading the Cleveland Browns to a 24-10 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 12. Replacing Dillon Gabriel, who was sidelined with a concussion, the rookie quarterback threw for 209 yards and one touchdown, helping Cleveland secure only its second win in eight games.

Stefanski praises team, but Sanders gets brief mention

After the triumph at Allegiant Stadium, the Browns shared a video on social media showing head coach Kevin Stefanski giving a rousing postgame speech. Stefanski was effusive in his praise for several players, but many Cleveland fans felt Sanders didn’t get the recognition he deserved.

“How about that road WIN!” Stefanski began. “We stayed resilient together like I told you we needed to. And we fought together.”

The coach singled out multiple players for their performances, with applause following each mention. “How about Gage (Lavardain’s) big return on special teams? How about Corey (Bojorquez) every single time pinning those guys and doing his job? Offense wasn’t perfect, but how about that big play by Samp (Dylan Sampson) at the end? I mean a huge play, a HUGE, HUGE play. Harold (Fanin Jr.) making a big play.”

When Stefanski finally mentioned Sanders, it was brief: “Nice job, Shedeur, well done.” The significantly more subdued tone didn’t go unnoticed on social media.

Fans react to brief mention

“Hahaha he threw that Shedeur mention in real fast and moved on,” commented one X user. “It pained Stefanski to give Sanders credit where it’s due,” wrote another.

Other reactions included:

• “Damn dude at least pretend to care about your QB for the cameras at the very least.”
• “This coach clearly doesn’t like Sanders LMFAOO dry ass compliment ‘nice job.’”
• “Bro hates 12… ‘nice job Shedeur’ after that performance with only one week of preparation.”
• “Lmaoooo aye he really hates Shedeur. Mans practically whispered the shout out to him but was yelling for literally everything and everybody else.”
• “Tell me you don’t like me without saying you don’t like me. Another rookie making his first start, nice job Shedeur.”
• “Man if this doesn’t tell you what he thinks of Sanders I don’t know what will. Literal two seconds of shine and not even a damn game ball on a win in his first start, that’s wild.”

The list goes on.

Sanders’ opportunity came due to injury

Stefanski has faced criticism from sections of the Browns fanbase for not giving Sanders a chance sooner. After Joe Flacco departed for the Cincinnati Bengals, Dillon Gabriel, another rookie, was chosen as Cleveland’s starting quarterback over Sanders. Sanders only got his opportunity because Gabriel was in concussion protocol.

Many feel Stefanski’s reaction suggests it wouldn’t be a surprise if Gabriel reclaimed the starting QB role once he’s healthy.

Watch this space.

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