With the QB battle between Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders still underway, trade rumors around the rookie are refusing to fade. Now, an NFL analyst has thrown another wrench into Sanders' uphill fight.

“The biggest flaw in Sanders’ game remains the same: His instinct isn’t to play on time with the offense, it’s to play on 'Shedeur Sanders time',” wrote Nick Baumgardner, via The Athletic.

NFL quarterbacks face a brutal clock: they have just two and a half seconds to read the entire progression. if the QB pops up too early, the routes aren't ready. If they pop up too late, they miss the open man.

As per Baumgardner's July 3 report in The Athletic, that's why footwork is so important, and that's where Sanders lacks the most.

“Instead of coming up on time and confidently throwing the ball, he hitches, stalls, and sort of freaks out. He’s not sure if he wants that shot over those linebackers and takes too long to decide, ultimately leading to a sack,” Baumgardner added.

Last season, Sanders took 23 sacks in just seven starts, posting a 9.79% sack rate, the fourth-worst in the NFL. His 15% sack rate on third and fourth downs ranked 163rd out of 184 historical NFL quarterback debuts.

Baumgardner believes that most of his sacks last season were due to his own timing issues. He finished the season with a league-low 34.5% successful passing rate and a dismal 19.9 QBR, numbers that fell well below expectations.

It's production like this that prevents Baumgardner from viewing Sanders as a star quarterback.

The analyst's comments also suggested that former NFL legend Deion Sanders' glory overshadows his son Shedeur's talent and makes his weaknesses even more prominent.

“When I see Shedeur Sanders, the hopeful media tycoon, I see the son of an icon. When I see Shedeur Sanders, the quarterback, I see Andy Dalton or Teddy Bridgewater,” Baumgardner added.

This comparison suggests Sanders may not develop into a franchise QB.

However, the critics are still divided, since one sports personality believes Sanders is the future of the Browns.

Shedeur Sanders receives major support amid trade buzz

Shedeur Sanders has been criticized by many for his play last season. That scrutiny is now reflected in his quarterback battle with Deshaun Watson.

But amid the chaos, former Cleveland Browns cornerback and All-Pro Hanford Dixon believes Sanders deserves a real opportunity.

“I didn’t say we had him, our quarterback, our franchise quarterback,” Hanford said on BIGPLAY Cleveland on June 29. “I said, I’d like to see Shedeur get a chance, and hopefully he is the guy. I don’t know if he is the guy yet, but I’d like to give him a chance to see.”

Last season, Sanders climbed to the QB1 spot and flashed plenty of promise, throwing for 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns. However, his 10 interceptions raised serious concerns, and they were enough to create a QB battle with Watson this year.

During the OTAs and mandatory minicamps, Watson completed 90 of 133 passes for 13 touchdowns and just three interceptions.

Sanders, meanwhile, went 79-of-113 with five touchdowns and three interceptions. While the numbers favor Watson, the QB battle is far from over.

Do you think Shedeur Sanders deserves a chance to start as the Browns QB1?

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Written by

Suryakant Das

Edited by

Arundhoti Palit