When reports came out on Saturday that the Browns were holding Shedeur Sanders out of practice due to "arm soreness," it raised plenty of eyebrows. Sanders was an ironman at Colorado, playing through much worse than arm soreness for the Buffaloes. And with him garnering extra reps and outperforming other Cleveland QBs, it's hard to imagine him voluntarily sitting out a practice with the Browns' first preseason game coming up on Friday in Carolina.
Sanders has had a good Training Camp. While the Browns were always likely to name one of the veteran QBs - Kenny Pickett or Joe Flacco - as the team's starter, it has been clear in camp that Sanders has been better than fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel.
That's what has made it even more curious that Cleveland continues to give Gabriel more reps, despite the stats and eye test telling everyone with a working brain that Sanders is the superior prospect.
According to former NFL QB Kurt Benkert, Sanders being held out of Saturday's practice could be a sign of Cleveland's intent to trade the former Colorado superstar QB.
This is what they do before a trade https://t.co/exY2otcuJq
— Kurt Benkert (@KurtBenkert) August 4, 2025
Benkert played college football at East Carolina and Virginia. While he was undrafted by the NFL, he did carve out a four-year professional career as a backup for the Atlanta Falcons, Green Bay Packers, and San Francisco 49ers. He has first-hand knowledge of the business of the NFL.
The Browns would be foolish to trade Shedeur Sanders
A trade really makes zero sense. If the Browns don't want Sanders, they shouldn't have drafted him four months ago. But if they do want him, they need to start acting like it. They should prioritize his development over Gabriel's as he continues to prove that he is the better prospect, despite being drafted two rounds later.
Sanders has flashed his potential already in Training Camp. He has earned more and more reps and hopefully will get an opportunity soon enough with the first team.
Cleveland has an open practice on Monday afternoon, which should be a signal of Sanders' health. If he's out there practicing, then perhaps Benkert and others were a bit too quick to connect the dots of a conspiracy theory. If he misses another practice, then maybe there's more credence to a potential move than it seems. That, or Sanders has a legitimate injury that could be devastating to his ability to compete for either the starting or backup job this year.