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11/24 19:02 CST Stefanski stresses continued improvement for Sanders after
successful 1st start for Browns
Stefanski stresses continued improvement for Sanders after successful 1st start
for Browns
By JOE REEDY
AP Sports Writer
Shedeur Sanders is the first Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback to win his
first NFL start in 30 years.
His next task? Trying to lead the Browns to two straight wins for the first
time in two seasons.
Coach Kevin Stefanski said on Monday that Sanders will get another start after
he led the Browns to a 24-10 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders.
"Number one job of quarterback is to win. So excited to get that first win
under his belt and then next thing is improvement. And that's what young
players do. Certainly, young quarterbacks do. You get one game better and
that's just from working at it," Stefanski said.
After struggling in his NFL debut against the Ravens, Sanders showed
improvement on Sunday. He completed 11 of 20 for 209 yards with a touchdown and
an interception.
It was only the third time this season a Browns QB has thrown for more than 200
yards.
Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees' game plan for Sanders had some similarities
to what was employed for Joe Flacco and Dillon Gabriel. Thirteen of Sanders'
attempts were under 10 air yards or behind the line of scrimmage.
However, Rees wasn't tentative about letting Sanders throw it deep. Sanders was
2 of 5 for 91 yards on passes of at least 21 air yards, including a 52-yard
connection to Isaiah Bond late in the first quarter.
Sanders rolled right after being pressured by Maxx Crosby while Bond was able
to get separation from Raiders cornerback Darnay Holmes.
By comparison, Gabriel was 2 of 11 on deep balls in six starts.
"I thought communication was really good throughout the day with him. And then
like you mentioned, the big plays down the field, obviously that first one to
I.B. (Isaiah Bond) was very high degree of difficulty with that play,"
Stefanski said.
Sanders' 66-yard touchdown to Dylan Sampson on a screen pass and 52-yard
completion to Bond are Cleveland's two-longest pass plays of the season.
While avoiding sacks and eluding pressure was a problem during preseason games
and against Baltimore, Sanders was sacked only once despite being pressured on
eight of his 21 drop-backs.
"First start for any young quarterback, you're always going to make sure the
operation is how you want it, and I thought by and large was good," Stefanski
said. "There's things that we can clean up and obviously that goes on all of us.
"Are there things that he can do better? Absolutely. We've already talked about
that with him. He has the mentality that he will make the adjustments to the
speed of the game, make the adjustments to what people are giving us, to make
those improvements."
What's working The pass rush, which sacked Las Vegas' Geno Smith 10 times. That was the second most in a game in team history. DE Myles Garrett had three sacks while eight players had least half a sack. What needs help Doing a better job converting on third down. The offense was 3 of 12 against the Raiders after going 2 of 14 the week before versus the Ravens. Stock up With six games remaining, Garrett has already set the team record with 18 sacks. It is also the most by an NFL player after 11 games since sacks became an official stat in 1982. Garrett's 14 sacks in the past five games also surpassed Michael Strahan (12 1/2 in 2001) for most in that span. Stock down RB Jerome Ford had only one carry for minus-3 yards and continues to be an afterthought in the offense. He has four carries for zero yards in the past five games and no catches in the past three. Injuries DT Adin Huntington (quad) and TE Brenden Bates (ankle) are expected to miss multiple games after being injured on Sunday, Key numbers 13 --- Road game losing streak snapped on Sunday at Las Vegas. 8-34-1 --- Total record since 1999 of quarterbacks when they make their first Browns start. 89 --- Tackles this season by LB Carson Schwesinger. The team's rookie record is 108 by Wally Rainer in 1999. What's next Cleveland is 2-3 at home this season going into Sunday's game against San Francisco. The Browns have won 8 of 10 at home against the 49ers, including the past four. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL |
