BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Shedeur Sanders isn’t fixated on the attention his relationship with coach Kevin Stefanski is receiving or the applause expected from fans when he takes the field Sunday against San Francisco.
Instead, the rookie Cleveland Browns quarterback made it clear Wednesday his only focus is preparing for the 49ers.
“I’m in grind mode, mentally understanding how to attack this defense that we’re going against. That’s where I am right now,” Sanders said on Wednesday.
Sanders’ staunchest supporters have put more scrutiny on his relationship with Stefanski after he became the first Browns rookie quarterback since Eric Zeier in 1995 to win his first NFL start.
After Sanders had Cleveland’s two longest pass plays of the season en route to completing 11 of 20 for 209 yards with a touchdown and an interception, claims of Stefanski trying to sabotage Sanders’ season by not giving him a chance earlier and not giving him snaps with the first-team offense until last week intensified.
Stefanski has defended his handling of Sanders’ development since the start of training camp.
“What people do outside the building isn’t really in my control. It’s not in my power. It’s not like I can go out there and tell ’em to do whatever,” Sanders said. “Coach Stefanski, he’s been coaching since I got here, and we’ve been doing a very great job with everything that’s going on. He tells me what I need to do on and off the field. We’ve definitely grown, our relationship and everything has grown.”
Sanders also provided some fuel for his supporters when he said, “wait until I get a full offseason” after the Raiders game.
“Yeah, that was just jokes, man. That was jokes. A lot of people took that out of context,” he said on Wednesday. “But you have to understand, the past six, seven months have been hard. So I want to definitely be thankful that I am able to work out with those guys, knowing I have a great defense and that I have come this far. I was truly amazed.”
There was also criticism of Stefanski after he didn’t give Sanders a game ball during a postgame speech in the locker room after the 24-10 victory over the Raiders.
‘We spent time this morning as well, pointing out all of our guys and the jobs they did. Obviously, a rookie starting his first game on the road and getting a win is huge. So you acknowledge all that with your team,” Stefanski said.
Even as Sanders gains rapport with receivers and the offensive line, he admitted he’s not yet comfortable and is seeking weekly improvement. A win over the 49ers would make him the first Browns rookie QB in the Super Bowl era to win his first two starts.
Besides the big plays, Sanders’ most significant improvement was reducing sacks, as he was only sacked once. The 49ers rank last in the NFL with just 13 total sacks after losing Nick Bosa and Fred Warner for the season.
Sanders has thrown two interceptions in his first two games, while San Francisco has picked off four passes over the past two weeks.
“He was climbing. He was trying to escape out the left side. So, yeah, I think it was great improvement,” guard Joel Bitonio said.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
By JOE REEDY
AP Sports Writer
