Shedeur Sanders adding versatility to the quarterback position

As Shedeur Sanders saw white jerseys surrounding him on third-and-7 in the second quarter, he made the decision to scramble out of the pocket. Bills DE Greg Rousseau swiped at his jersey but couldn’t grab hold, allowing him to slip away. Shedeur Sanders picked up the first down and withstood contact for a 13-yard gain to the Cleveland 45-yard line.

The elusiveness and playmaking from Shedeur Sanders against Buffalo helped him finish with 49 rushing yards on four carries, leading the Browns in rushing yards.

“We talked during the week about, we thought there may be some moments that he’ll be able to tuck it and go, and I thought he did a nice job early,” Stefanski said. “Those are very, very real yards. It’s a tough dynamic for a defense to have to defend the quarterback when he tucks it and can go. So that’s all part of his game.”

Another part of Shedeur Sanders’ game is his ability to throw the long ball, but Buffalo took that away in Week 16. Shedeur Sanders instead took advantage of what the Bills’ defense gave him. He threw for 157 yards and a touchdown against Buffalo and completed 20 of 29 passing attempts, a 69 percent mark and his career high completion percentage. Shedeur Sanders didn’t throw a pass longer than 12 yards through the air, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

“I think when you watch it, you always go into a game understanding the defense that you’re playing and the things that they do that maybe preclude you from taking some of those plays,” Stefanski said. “Doesn’t mean you don’t call them and take them when they’re there. But I’d say you have to go into every game understanding that the defense has a plan of attack and have to take what they give you.”

His next test will be against the Steelers’ defense in Week 17 in his first action against Pittsburgh. The Steelers beat Cleveland 23-9 in Week 6, in a game where QB Dillon Gabriel threw 52 times for 221 yards and was sacked six times.

“It’s going to be a matter of understanding this defense, this Pittsburgh defense, which is different than the team we played before,” Stefanski said. “Obviously, Shedeur did not play in the first Pittsburgh game, so first time versus that group. So, you really have to spend a lot of time this week getting to know this defensive front, their coverages, those types of things.”