Shedeur Sanders makes Browns roster with one question unanswered

Shedeur Sanders has survived cutdown day.

Sanders is one of three quarterbacks on the Browns roster along with veteran Joe Flacco and third-round pick Dillon Gabriel.

Flacco was recently named the starter, and Kenny Pickett was traded to the Raiders to be their backup quarterback on Monday.

Deshaun Watson is recovering from a torn Achilles and will start the season on the PUP list, meaning he will miss at least the first four games as his timeline for a return remains unclear.

That trade left Sanders and Gabriel battling to be the backup quarterback. There is no official word on who the No. 2 is, but Gabriel has had the more impressive preseason.

The preseason started very well for Sanders. He shined in the opener, throwing for 138 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-10 win over the Panthers that created plenty of headlines. But training camp went sideways from there for the son of Hall of Famer Deion Sanders.

Sanders suffered an oblique injury in a joint practice on Aug. 13 that cost him time, and he struggled in the final preseason game, taking one sack in which he held onto the ball too long and backpedaled for several yards before going down.

Sanders didn’t pass for a single first down against the Rams and all five of his possessions ended in a punt.

The Browns lost a net of nine yards on those five possessions with Sanders in the game as he was sacked five times and finished 3 of 6 for just 14 yards in almost a full half of work.

“Obviously we didn’t play great as an offense in the second half,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said. “That’s never on one person.”

Sanders didn’t hide his feelings about not being out there for the final drive of a 19-17 win over the Rams with the Browns turning to Tyler Huntley to drive the team down for a game-winning field goal. Huntley was cut days after the game.

“In the battle of the moment, in the heat of the battle, you want to be that alpha,” Sanders said. “You want to be that dog. You want to be out there in that final two-minute drive. So of course, small things, of course frustrate, but that’s what happens when you want to be a player to be able to change a franchise.”

The Browns may have more confidence in Gabriel, who has shined in two preseason games.

The former Oregon star completed 12-of-19 passes for 129 yards and a touchdown in less than a quarter in the preseason finale.