SANDERS WAS THE ANSWER ALL ALONG
The final whistle in Cleveland has sounded, and the math is brutal. The Browns just finished their season with a defiant 30-24 win over their hated rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers. The victory was sweet, a testament to resilience. But in the cold light of the AFC North standings, it’s nothing more than a footnote. Cleveland’s season is over. They finished 8-9, one game behind the 9-8 Steelers for the final AFC Wild Card spot.
Now, rewind the tape. Go back to Week 1. The Browns’ new, $90 million franchise quarterback, Baker Mayfield, takes the field. What followed was a carousel of inconsistency, injury, and maddening play that left one of the NFL’s most talented rosters on the outside looking in. The defense was elite. The weapons were potent. The quarterback play was, ultimately, not good enough.
A viral post from analyst Trenton R. Thompson has now become the screaming indictment of the Browns’ entire season: “The Browns just beat the Steelers. Now rewind the season and give Shedeur Sanders the job from Week 1. That’s a division title they handed away. The haters lie, but the film doesn’t.”
IS THIS JUST ANGRY FAN FICTION, OR A LEGITIMATE ALTERNATE HISTORY THAT WILL HAUNT CLEVELAND FOR A DECADE? The argument is explosive: the Browns had the perfect quarterback for their system fall into their laps, ignored him due to “system quarterback” bias, and watched their expensive, conventional choice fall short. This is the story of the rookie who proved everyone wrong, the general manager who might have gotten it catastrophically wrong, and the film that doesn’t lie.
“THE SYSTEM QUARTERBACK” SMOKESCREEN: HOW THE NFL SLEPT ON SHEDEUR’S GENIUS
The knocks on Shedeur Sanders coming out of Colorado were loud, persistent, and lazy. He played in a “gimmicky,” pass-happy “Air Raid” system under his father, Deion Sanders. He put up “video game numbers” against suspect Pac-12 defenses. He wasn’t a “prototypical” NFL prospect. He was a “creation of the scheme.”
The Cleveland Browns, holding the 22nd overall pick, listened to that noise. They saw a quarterback who completed 71% of his passes for over 4,700 yards and 40 touchdowns in his final college season and somehow talked themselves out of it. Instead, they made the “safe,” expensive move, signing veteran Baker Mayfield to a massive three year, $90 million contract in free agency to be their unquestioned starter.
Meanwhile, Shedeur Sanders tumbled. He wasn’t selected until the second round, with the 46th overall pick, by the Carolina Panthers a team in total disarray with no offensive line and few weapons. The narrative was set: the project quarterback went to a doomed situation, while the proven veteran went to a contender.
BUT THE FILM FROM COLORADO TOLD A DIFFERENT STORY A STORY VERY FEW BOTHERED TO WATCH CLOSELY. Yes, it was a pass heavy system. But Sanders’s tape revealed traits that translate to any league, any scheme:
- NFL-Caliber Arm Talent: Velocity on deep outs and the ability to drive the ball into tight windows.
- Elite Anticipation: Throwing receivers open before they made their break, a non negotiable pro skill.
- Pocket Poise and Mobility: The ability to navigate pressure, keep his eyes downfield, and create outside structure.
- Clutch Gene: A ridiculous number of game winning drives and fourth quarter comebacks at Colorado.
The “system quarterback” label was a convenient scouting crutch. In reality, Sanders was the system. He didn’t just execute plays; he dictated coverages and consistently made NFL level throws that had nothing to do with his playbook. Cleveland, and much of the league, missed it.
THE PARALLEL SEASON: BAKER’S BUST VS. SHEDEUR’S SURGE
The 2025 NFL season played out like a controlled experiment, and the results are damning for the Browns’ front office.
In Cleveland, the Baker Mayfield experience was a rollercoaster that never reached the peak. He showed flashes of his former self but was plagued by the same inconsistencies that have defined his career. The stats tell a story of mediocrity: 3,412 passing yards, 22 touchdowns, 14 interceptions, and an 88.7 passer rating. More importantly, in critical division games against Baltimore, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh, Mayfield faltered. He committed back breaking turnovers, missed open receivers, and failed to elevate the team when the elite defense needed a single scoring drive to seal a game.
The Browns lost four games by one score. In each, a late-game drive stalled due to a misfire, a sack, or a poor decision from Mayfield. The roster was too good for 8-9. The quarterback was the clear limiting factor.
Meanwhile, in Carolina, Shedeur Sanders was thrown into a firestorm. The Panthers’ offensive line was a turnstile. His top receiver was a rookie. The team was bad. Yet, from the moment he took over as starter in Week 4, he displayed a maturity and talent that silenced every pre draft critic.
His rookie season numbers are historic: 3,998 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, only 8 interceptions, and a 97.1 passer rating. He did this while being sacked a league high 52 times. He wasn’t just putting up stats in garbage time; he was willing a terrible team to respectability. The Panthers, projected to win 3 games, finished 7-10, with Sanders engineering four fourth quarter comebacks.
The contrast is staggering. One quarterback, given a championship-ready roster, failed to meet the moment. The other quarterback, given a disaster, performed like a seasoned Pro Bowler. The “project” was pro ready. The “proven veteran” was the project.
THE “WHAT IF” SIMULATION: REWINDING THE BROWNS’ SEASON WITH SHEDEUR
Trenton Thompson’s viral claim is specific: give Sanders the job from Week 1, and the Browns win the AFC North. Let’s apply the film test to Cleveland’s actual season.
Look at the losses. Specifically, the close ones:
- Week 3 vs. Baltimore (L 23-20): Mayfield threw a red zone interception in the 3rd quarter and took a costly sack on the final drive, forcing a long field goal attempt that missed. Sanders’s film shows elite red zone decision making and a supernatural ability to avoid sacks while keeping plays alive. Simulated Result: Likely WIN.
- Week 7 at Cincinnati (L 27-24): Down three with 2 minutes left, Mayfield’s drive stalled after two inaccurate passes. Sanders’s entire college career was built on executing the two minute drill under pressure. Simulated Result: Toss-up, leaning WIN.
- Week 12 vs. Pittsburgh (L 20-17): In a defensive slugfest, Mayfield’s third-quarter pick-six was the game’s only touchdown. Sanders’s hallmark has been elite ball security (only 8 INTs despite constant pressure). Simulated Result: Likely WIN.
Converting just two of those three games a conservative estimate based on Sanders’s proven clutch performance changes everything. An 10-7 record wins the AFC North. The Browns host a playoff game. The narrative around the franchise is completely flipped.
The financial implication is even more painful. Instead of paying Mayfield $30 million for mediocre play, the Browns would have had Sanders on a cost controlled rookie contract for four years, allowing them to fortify the offensive line or add another star weapon with that cap space. They chose the expensive, declining asset over the cheap, ascending superstar.
THE LEGACY DECISION: HOW ONE DRAFT NIGHT MAY DEFINE TWO FRANCHISES
The fallout from this “what if” will resonate for years. For the Carolina Panthers, they have stumbled into a franchise quarterback. They have their answer. The future is bright.
For the Cleveland Browns, this is a potential franchise altering mistake of historic proportions. This isn’t missing on a late-round pick. This is passing on a clear, film verified talent at the most important position in sports a talent who perfectly fit your coach’s offensive philosophy because of outdated scouting tropes and a fear of the unconventional.
General Manager Andrew Berry’s tenure will now be judged by this decision. He bet $90 million on Baker Mayfield’s redemption arc over Shedeur Sanders’s proven production and poise. As Sanders racks up Offensive Rookie of the Year awards and Mayfield faces another offseason of questions, that bet looks like a catastrophic misread of both players.
The “haters” did lie. The film never did. Every scout who dismissed Sanders as a “system” guy, every executive who thought his success was due to his father or his scheme, has been exposed. The evidence played out on NFL fields every Sunday.
The Browns beat the Steelers in Week 18. But the victory is hollow. It’s a reminder of what could have been, of the division title that was within their grasp, and of the generational quarterback they watched someone else draft.
They had a chance to get “HIM.” They chose someone else. And their season ended exactly one game too soon because of it.
If you were the Browns’ GM, staring at the 22nd pick and knowing what you know now, do you make the pick, or sign the veteran?